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Fri, 03 Sep 2010
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 Columnists :: Down 2 Earth - Terence Fernandez ( Every Tuesday & Friday ) |
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Who speaks for Indians?
MIC, Hindraf, Makal Sakhti, PPP, IPF and MAICCI. What do these acronyms and names have in common? Well they are all Indian or Indian-based parties and they are all going through a leadership crisis.
The MIC is a story where the less said the better. Ditto the IPF which has been running around like a headless chicken since the death of its president three years ago.
Makal Sakhti is a break-away faction of Hindraf and is witnessing a leadership bout.
The PPP has all but lost what little inroads it made in the last two election terms, to be taken seriously. It had a deputy minister and was given a parliamentary seat which it first won, and a state seat which it lost in 2004. In 2008, it lost both but retained its deputy ministerial post.
However, it seems that it is a matter of time before PPP loses that as well, no thanks to the split between its president and former youth chief.
Now even the Malaysian Associated Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MAICCI) is doing an MCA by asking the registrar of companies to decide who is the association’s rightful leader.
With the so-called watchdogs of the Indian community experiencing their respective issues, is it any wonder why the Indian community has yet to find its rightful place in mainstream society 52 years after independence?
And when you throw the Malaysian Indian United Party and other mosquito parties into the mix, as one blogger put it Malaysian Indians are the smallest minority with the largest number of political parties (groups) representing them.
How do these groups hope to promote the advancement of the community when they can’t even get their act together and put up a united front?
From allegations of graft, CBT, cronyism and even murder, does one need to ask why many
Indians are jaded as to who rightfully represents their interests? With Indian representation in Parliament being larger post-March 8, 2008, will the Indian vote continue to go to the alternative candidates?
When Indian “leaders” keep harping on 3% Indian equity after five decades and
foreign universities with large Malaysian Indian populations end up losing accreditation by the Malaysian government, the question is who speaks for them? And is talk enough when entrance to Malaysian universities and government scholarships are mired in controversy?
With Indians making up a significant portion of the rising urban poor it is time these parties and groups get their priorities right if they are sincere about uplifting this community.
Addressing these concerns should top their “to-do” list – instead of who gets to sign the cheques, garland the prime minister, hold the microphone or has his picture in the papers?
Is it any wonder then that the perception is that these Indian groups are perceived by many as nothing but a joke and many young members of the community prefer to go it alone rather than rely on the all talk but no action approach of some of these associations or factions?
In the midst of it all, we see the emergence of many groups who without fanfare and on the quiet are doing more than many of their publicity-hungry counterparts can ever hope to achieve even with the support and endorsement of the prime minister and government.
I know some of them – lawyers, bankers, educationists, businessmen, retired sportsmen and newsmen – who have selflessly pledged their time, money and networking to help hundreds of underprivileged Indians. The thing is some of these good Samaritans are not even Indians. Yes, there are Malay businessmen giving to Tamil schools and they should be the poster boys of 1Malaysia.
The sad thing is the selfless ones perhaps have what it takes to finally elevate the community but are hindered by the need to stroke political backs. No, their ideas and efforts cannot be implemented unless it is through the auspices of politicians – the same ones who are throwing spanners in the works but will be the first to claim credit when the programmes borne out of the blood, sweat and tears of these unsung heroes are successful.
At the launch of the Government Transformation Programme (GTP) last December, the leader of an Indian-based political party who had lost the confidence of his own constituents – not a minister or a government official – was invited on stage to be honoured. This alone tells us that the GTP is at risk of going the way of many great (and costly) plans. History is full of benevolent ideas which failed due to the politicisation of social and economical programmes.
As with all political parties and social groups, the cause must be bigger than any individual. As long as this is not acknowledged, there will come a time when all these factions will only be good for fodder for Comedy Court.
Terence says whatever achievement he has is due to hard work and the good graces of many individuals. MIC is not one of them. He can be reached at terence@thesundaily.com.
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Updated: 10:07AM Tue, 09 Feb 2010
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