"The top leadership has already drafted an unofficial list of candidates... leaders aligned to Palanivel have been given the go ahead to start work in specific constituencies like setting up service centres or building rapport with local leaders be it from Umno, MCA or MIC," said a leader who did not want to be identified.
The party's nine parliamentary seats are Tapah, Sungai Siput (both in Perak), Cameron Highlands (Pahang), Teluk Kemang (Negeri Sembilan), Kota Raja, Kapar, Subang, Hulu Selangor (Selangor) and Segamat (Johor).The party's candidates lost six parliamentary seats in 2008. MIC only won the Tapah, Cameron Highlands and Segamat seats in that election. The party recaptured the Hulu Selangor seat in a subsequent by-election.
Palanivel, who became party chief in December 2010, is said to be eyeing the Sungai Siput or Teluk Kemang parliamentary constituencies.Palanivel who is now a deputy minister was appointed by virtue of being made a senator.He was a three term MP for Hulu Selangor before his shocking loss in the 2008 general election. In the subsequent by-election held in the constituency, Barisan Nasional decided to drop Palanivel in favour of P Kamanathan, the MIC Putera coordinator.
"He has to contest a parliamentary seat if he wants to be a minister. Palanivel himself has announced that the party's senatorship term will only be for one term. This applies to him as well."So to be appointed cabinet minister he has to contest a seat. For the time being we in the party believe only these two seats can save the president from another embarrassing defeat," a source told FMT.
Samy Vellu's bastion
However, the source also pointed out that retaking Sungai Siput, the former bastion of ex-MIC president S Samy Vellu, from the opposition will not be easy."Palanivel has to face challenges thrown by the opposition but he has to also soothe the feelings of hardcore (former president S) Samy Vellu supporters who are still very loyal to the former president," he said.It is however learnt that Samy Vellu has other plans for the seat. He has been sending veiled messages to the MIC top leadership that he wants Youth chief T Mohan to contest there.
"If Palanivel refuses to give the seat to Mohan and contests, then Samy Vellu will ensure Palanivel loses in the constituency," said a source, adding that Palanivel's latest actions indicated that he "is planning to kill Mohan's political career."The source also pointed out that Palanivel can "checkmate" his former boss, if he picks Samy Vellu's son and MIC publicity and communication chief Vell Paari as candidate for the seat.
"With Vell Paari in the fray, Samy Vellu will be forced to throw his backing for his son although Vell Paari is now aligned to Palanivel and working against the interest of his father," he said.Party observers feel that the chances of Palanivel winning the Teluk Kemang seat is considerably higher compared to Sungai Siput due to obvious reasons.Palanivel, it is learnt, has promised the Teluk Kemang seat to former MIC secretary general T Rajagopalu as a trade off for vacating the secretary-general position.
Rajagopalu, was replaced by S Murugessan as the new secretary-general, while the former was appointed as Negeri Sembilan MIC chief last month."The party president will most probably go for Teluk Kemang. He will definitely not give the seat to S Sothinathan," said the source.Sothinathan, the former MIC vice president, is a known close confidante of Samy Vellu. He was a two-term MP for Teluk Kemang before losing the seat in the 2008 general election.
The Tapah seat, now held by party vice-president and Federal Territory and Urban Well-Being Deputy Minister M Saravanan is also said to be going through some problems.Sources revealed that Perak state assembly speaker R Ganesan is targeting the seat.According to the unofficial list prepared by Palanivel, Murugesan has been named to contest in Subang, former senator S Ravichandran in Kapar and M Mohana, a MIC central working committee member, in Kota Raja.
In a related development, the Cameron Highlands MP S K Devamany, who is also MIC vice president and deputy minister in the Prime Minister's Department, is trying hard to convince the leadership to allow him to contest the seat.It is learnt that the seat will not be contested by a DAP candidate for the opposition as in the past but replaced with a PKR man and this will make it hard for Devamany to win the seat.
"The leadership wants a fresh face but Devamany is not budging," said the source.From the looks of it, only incumbent MPs Dr S Subramaniam (Segamat and Human Resources Minister) and Kamalanathan are save bets to contest their respective parliamentary seats. Excerpt: MIC chief G Palanivel is expected to make sweeping changes to the party's candidates to be fielded in the next general election.
Source :http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/2011/04/26/mic-candidates-sweeping-changes-expected/
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