Malaysiakini has the related story of MIC's Boss: We're rock solid and that the party has not been weakened by recent incidents and says he vows to continue fighting for the community
2nd UPDATE: December 21, 2007 21:40 PM - Samy Bragging again, better talk & explain something about Maika!
Samy Vellu To Go On The Air Again Over Indian Community Issues
KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 21 (Bernama) -- MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu will go on the air once again tomorrow to talk on the topic of "Malaysian Indian Community - Then and Now". His press secretary E. Sivabalan, in a statement, said Samy Vellu would be appearing in the Tamil talk-show "Karuthu Kalam" or "Opinion Forum" between 6pm and 7pm over RTM's Channel 2. On Wednesday, the Works Minister appeared live on RTM's "60 Minit Bersama Menteri" (60 Minutes with the Minister) programme.
Sivabalan said that in the recorded interview to be aired tomorrow, the MIC president would speak on, among others, the achievements of the Indian community and the challenges they had to face to be on par with the other communities. He said Samy Vellu would also dwell on MIC's programmes and projects as well as the government's intervention and assistance towards building a resilient and modern Indian community. "Samy Vellu would also emphasise the importance of staying united in a multi-racial country in the wake of the numerous challenges confronting the nation and the people," said Sivabalan.
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December 22, 2007 01:07 AM
Opposition Taking Advantage Of Situation - Vigneswaran
KLANG, Dec 21 (Bernama) -- The Indian community must realise that the activities of the group behind the illegal assemblies in the federal capital last month has allowed the opposition to take advantage of the situation. MIC Youth chief S.A. Vigneswaran said this was among the negative effects of the group's activities where the opposition had exploited the situation by causing confusion among the Indians, in its attempt to fish for votes in the coming general election. In light of this, he said, the MIC Youth could not keep quiet but to be more proactive in controlling the situation. Vigneswaran, who is also Parliamentary Secretary to the Youth and Sports Ministry, called on all the divisional MIC Youth leaders to go to the ground.
"They must study the unsolved problems of the Indian community and hold discussions with Indian groups in their respective areas. "I want a more aggressive and effective network of cooperation in the MIC Youth," he told reporters after holding a special meeting with Selangor MIC Youth here tonight. The two-hour meeting was attended by about 200 MIC Youth members including their leaders in the 19 divisions in the state.
The tour undertaken by MIC Youth to explain to the Indians, current issues affecting them and to study problems faced by the community, began today. Vigneswaran said all races had their problems but the government did not practise favouritism and would strive to maintain racial cooperation and unity in the country. "The prime minister has said that all problems should be resolved through discussions in the BN spirit and based on its struggle," he said.
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UPDATE: Friday December 21, 2007; MYT 6:55:02 PM
Two Hindraf leaders file habeas corpus applications
KUALA LUMPUR: Two leaders of Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), who are detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA), have filed their habeas corpus (wrongful detention) application at the High Court here for their release. Lawyer Karpal Singh filed the application on behalf of Hindraf legal adviser P. Uthaya-kumar and its co-ordinator K. Vasantha Kumar. He filed at the High Court (criminal) registry at about noon Friday.
They named the Internal Security Minister and the Kamunting Detention Centre’s superintendent as respondents In the affidavit, P. Waytha Nayagi, who affirmed the document to support the application for her brother Uthayakumar, said his arrest in Bangsar last Thursday and continued detention was unconstitutional and unlawful. Waytha Nayagi, 41, said there had been contravention of the provisions of the Federal Constitution and non-compliance with the provisions of rules of Internal Security (Advisory Board Procedure) Rules 1972. She said the allegations against her brother were groundless and asked the court to declare the detention order null and void. She applied for him to be brought to the court and released forthwith. In a notice of motion Waytha Nayagi also asked for any order deemed fit by the court. In the other habeas corpus application, K. Vickneswary, wife of Vasantha Kumar, affirmed an affidavit for the purpose. Vickneswary, 35, said her husband's arrest in Brickfields last Thursday was not in accordance with law and illegal.
She said the minister had acted mechanically and prematurely and that the allegations of fact against her husband were baseless and that his continued detention was unconstitutional and unlawful. She applied for him to be brought to the court and be set at free as well as any further order deemed proper by the court. Speaking to reporters later, Karpal Singh said: "We are serving the papers of four applicants (lawyers M. Manoharan, V. Ganabatirau, Uthayakumar and former senior executive Vasantha Kumar) to the minister so that they will be ready for the hearing at High Court on Wednesday before Judicial Commissioner Zainal Azman Abdul Aziz," he added.
= == = == = == ORIGINAL Post Below
SAMY Vows to Soldier On for MIC & Indians; Brags of “hollow Achievements & Deeds” By MIC for Indians; Asked -”What Money?” – Conveniently Ignore Siphoning Maika Shares “God-Sent Wealth”?Samy Vellu son of a rubber tapper who became a certified Architect from Technical College and rose to be the “representative” of the Indians community in Malaysia had an exclusive Bernama inspired interview and brags a lot of his “hollow achievements & deeds” he has done for the Indian community. Short is his memory and long is the sufferings of the ordinary Indians lot in Malaysia. Samy has the audacity to ask “What Money?” he has siphoned off; conveniently ignored the many questions the Maika fiasco had raised that had shamed him and the Hanky-Panky in Telekom Shares that went to the three companies representing the “interests” of the Indian community. What was Samy role in this debacle? Why did he prevent this wealth from reaching Maika? For the Personal Greed & Gain of his relatives?. (see Ailiran expose at Bottom) What went wrong for a venture that took off in a blaze of glory? Why is it in shambles today?
The poor Indians had turned to Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi 4 years ago as a last resort for help. Many of them had lost almost everything in investing in the Maika shares. All they want is the return of their investment. Justice must be done to them. Now in 2007 is he responding?
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December 21, 2007 16:55 PM
Samy Vellu Vows To Fight On For Indian Community
By S. Retna
ABOVE: Samy brags a lot of his “hollow achievements & deeds” and conveniently Ignore Siphoning of Maika Shares “God-Sent Wealth”?
PUTRAJAYA, Dec 21 (Bernama) -- "I will continue to fight for the betterment of the (Indian) community. The question of the MIC (Malaysian Indian Congress) being dented from recent incidents does not arise," said Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu, the MIC supremo. Referring to recent street protests by some members of the Indian community and those from the so-called Hindu Rights Action Force
(Hindraf), he said the MIC's spirit and strength had not been weakened by those incidents. "I have always stood by the MIC and will continue to stand by the party. I will continue to fight for the community to ensure that Indians in the country continue to rise socially and economically," he told Bernama in an interview. But the MIC president, who has led the largest Indian-based political party in the country for the last 28 years, reminded the Indian community that Malaysia is a multiracial country and that the nation's wealth must be shared in a reasonable manner.
"This is important. We cannot get whatever we have asked for and the same applies to the other races. The sharing of the country's economic wealth must be addressed in a reasonable manner," he said in a frank interview which covered a wide range of subjects involving the Indian community. Touching on Hindraf, Samy Vellu, who is Works Minister, said that when the group initially censured the government, it did not ask for anything for Malaysian Indians but was more inclined to criticise the authorities and in particular, Umno, the main partner in the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition.
"But they failed to realise that fighting Umno is equivalent to fighting the Malays, who are the majority in the country. This is not the approach to make changes for the (Indian) community. We have always worked with the government, which is backed by Umno, to bring changes to the (Indian) community," he said. Hindraf, on Nov 25, held a rally in Kuala Lumpur claiming that the government had failed to help the Indians over the last 50 years. Five Hindraf leaders are now held under the Internal Security Act at the Kamunting detention centre for being a threat to national security. Samy Vellu, who is often noted for his outspoken nature, said although Hindraf did not discredit the MIC or its leadership, the MIC could not stand and watch "any attack on Umno".
"I know the weaknesses in the implementation and delivery system at several stages of the government. In spite of this, I have continued to raise issues concerning the Malaysian Indian community. "Being a minister, I'm privileged to have this information and whatever we discuss at the Cabinet is classified. As such, I'm unable to divulge certain information to the public, especially to the community. "I have openly made constructive criticism of the government's recruitment and promotion of Indians in the public sector. I have also brought to the attention of the Cabinet the sufferings of estate workers, who are now enjoying a fixed monthly salary...we in the MIC have raised various matters to the government as we represent 1.8 million Indians in the country," he said. Speaking on Hindu temples, the minister said MIC had always been a "shield" for these temples although some of these places of worship were built illegally. "As for the Kampung Jawa temple (which was demolished by the authorities in October because it was built on private land after the land owner obtained a court ruling), we did our best and even the prime minister did his best but the court order stood in our way. I have personally handled thousands of temples," he said. For the record, there are more than 25,000 Hindu temples nationwide.
"I did this because I'm a staunch Hindu but I'm not a Hindu extremist. I know for a fact that extremism can never achieve anything," Samy Vellu stressed. The MIC president also said that he had been constantly "fighting" with the government to get what Malaysian Indians were entitled to and that he had records to prove this.
"On Tamil schools, I have looked after these schools because I myself am a son of a rubber tapper, who had lived in estates and I was one of the first to go to a Tamil school...Tamil is my language...my mother tongue. "Now elements who do not know about Tamil schools and their problems are making blind accusations that the MIC did not protect these schools. The government and the prime minister gave RM1 million to temples annually. "Some quarters have asked for the acounts of this money. I only make recommendations to the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) (under the Prime Minister's Department) on the allocations needed and it channels the funds directly.
"Some ignorant people have been asking what has happened to the money. My question is, "What money? Who gave what money to the MIC?" he said. On the economic front, Samy Vellu said the MIC, through its economic bureau, had created some 50,000 active Indian businessmen, from small to big. He said these businessmen had also asked the government to allow them to bring in workers from India. This matter was raised by him in the Cabinet and approval was given to bring in 40,000 Indian workers. Following the MIC's request, the government also allocated some RM40 million for micro-credit schemes and this scheme too had been successful. "However we face problems of repayment of these loans. Despite that, the MIC through Nijhar (Tan Sri K.S. Nijhar, MIC vice-president and party economic bureau chief) has now proposed for further financial aid for Malaysian Indians," he said.
Samy Vellu also claimed that "some unscrupulous elements" were taking advantage of the current situation to hit out at the MIC and its leadership by spreading lies via the short messaging service (SMS). He alleged that these people had actually failed the Malaysian Indian community. "I have made it a point to have direct contact with the grassroots...we must hear and listen to the grouses of the people. "At no time will I give up the Malaysian Indian community. I'm always subservient to them and nobody can stop me from fighting for the community," he said.
= == = ==Background from Aliran in 2003, short is his memory
Maika: Bleeding Again; A case of noble intentions gone awry
by P Ramakrishnan; Aliran Monthly 2003:11
In its twenty years of tortured history, Maika investors have known nothing but pain and sorrow. The new dawn of a golden opportunity that was held out to the Indian poor never arrived. Instead, each passing year only witnessed dashed hopes and broken promises that littered the chequered history of Maika. Touted as an economic vehicle and a miracle to lift the Indian poor from the shackles of poverty, Maika was launched with much hype and hope. The poor Indians - traditional MIC supporters, the lower middle-class and the working class Indians as well as a vast majority of plantation workers - were mesmerised into responding enthusiastically. Respond they did, some scraping the barrel, others mortgaging their property and pawning their jewellery while the vast majority took loans at exorbitant rates to invest in a venture that promised dreams of hopes and tantalising prospects.
It’s not only the poor Indians who responded to this call to rally behind the MIC's efforts to secure seven per cent of the corporate ownership for the Indian community - which at that time had been stagnating at under one per cent since 1960. Even the middle-class Indians who were wary of the caste and communal politics practised by MIC came forward to participate.
Incorporated on 13 September 1982, Maika commenced business on 31 January 1983.
A Phenomenal Response
According to Terence Gomez, “Although the original plan by the MIC was to ensure that at least RM30 million worth of Maika shares were subscribed to, so successful was the campaign to promote the company that by 1984 a phenomenal RM106 million was raised from almost 66,400 shareholders. The largest individual shareholder with almost 2.8 million shares was MIC president Datuk Seri S Samy Vellu. The amount invested in Maika was even larger than that obtained by the MCA’s Multi-Purpose Holdings when the company commenced business.”What went wrong for a venture that took off in a blaze of glory? Why is it in shambles today?
It is a case of a noble intention that has gone awry through bad management, poor investment and sheer arrogance that brooked no question and refused to be accountable to the shareholders. If proper business ethics had been observed, if honest criticism had been tolerated and accommodated, if from the beginning Maika was run by professionals rather than politicians, Maika perhaps may not have nose-dived into the hopeless situation that it is in today.
In spite of a number of major acquisitions made into some important companies - like the United Asian Bank (UAB), United Oriental Assurance (UOA), Malaysian Airlines System (MAS), Malaysian International Shipping Corporation (MISC), TV3 and Edaran Otomobil Malaysia Bhd (EON) - Maika’s performance has been mediocre.
It registered a profit from 1984 to 1986 - the total amount was nothing to shout about and amounted to RM16.5 million only - which enabled Maika to declare three dividends which totalled 11 sen per share.
Telekom Shares: Hanky-Panky
There wasn’t any fanfare when Maika was allotted shares in Syarikat Telekom Malaysia Bhd (STMB). It was assumed in 1990 that Maika had been allotted all the shares it had subscribed to. No details were made known at that time.
Sometime in the middle of February 1992 the shroud of secrecy surrounding the Telekom shares allocation was ripped apart. Then all hell broke loose.
A journalist from Watan disclosed that “there could have been some hanky-panky in the allocation of Telecoms shares to Maika.” This was then followed by another report in a Tamil magazine, Thoothan, on April 1, 1992 which disclosed that there could have been some discrepancy in the distribution of the ten million Telekom shares allocated to Maika by the Finance Ministry. Malaysians learned for the first time that Maika acquired only one million and not the entire 10 million shares that were allotted to Maika.
Samy Vellu, through the Tamil Nesan and at MIC meetings, tried to explain by insisting that the cash flow problem faced by Maika did not allow Maika to take up all ten million shares. But, one of the directors, a one-time ally of Samy Vellu, Vijandran, issued a statement insinuating that the truth may not have been told. When this matter was raised in parliament, Finance Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim disclosed that since Maika had stated that it could take up only one million shares, the remaining nine million shares were allocated to three companies proposed by Maika because to his “ministry”s knowledge, the three companies represented the interests of the Indian community” (The Star, April 30, 1992).Incidentally, at the time of share allocation in 1990, the Finance Minister was Tun Daim Zainuddin.
Maika Didn’t Reject The Shares
The mystery deepended and bewildered the shareholders when another Maika director, Pasamanikam, contradicted the statements made by Anwar and Samy Vellu. According to Pasamanikam, Maika did not reject the Finance Ministry’s offer and did not propose that the nine million shares be allocated to any other company. He further revealed that Maika had indeed raised a RM50 million loan to facilitate the acquisition of the entire 10 million shares even before the Finance Ministry had withdrawn its offer. Why did the Finance Ministry cancel the initial offer of the 10 million shares and subsequently allot only one million shares to Maika? Who was responsible for the retraction of the original offer? Who lied to the Finance Ministry? Who informed them that Maika had recommended that the nine million shares be given to the three companies? Who supplied the names of these three companies? Who coerced the Finance Ministry to change their mind?
There was no earthly reason for the Finance Ministry to change its mind on its own after having allocated 10 million shares. Who aborted this offer?
According to Tan Sri G K Rama Iyer, the Managing Director of Maika Holdings Bhd - as revealed in his press release dated May 16, 1992 - Samy Vellu was informed at 6.10 am on october 5, 1990 that Maika had been offered 10 million STMB shares and of the probability of obtaining full loan financing and that Maika intended to take up the entire allocation of 10 million shares.(Indeed, a letter dated October 5, 1990 from Arab-Malaysian Merchant Bankers Bhd - AMMBB - offering RM50 million to finance the purchase of the 10 million shares was received on October 6, 1990).
There Must Have Been A Mistake
He further clarified that Samy Vellu replied that “there must have been a mistake. The offer to Maika should be for one million and not 10 million. “According to Dato Seri Samy Vellu, the remaining 9 million shares were for allocation to “other MIC bodies”. “Further, Dato Seri Samy Vellu stated that he would contact the Ministry to clarify the position.” It was then, after Samy Vellu had contacted the Finance Ministry, that the letter of offer was retracted and Maika’s allocation reduced to one million shares. Why did Samy Vellu prevent Maika from acquiring the 10 million shares? Wasn’t Maika his brain-child to raise the corporate wealth of the Indian community so that their economic welfare would be secured? Wasn’t he the leader of MIC which launched Maika as a business venture to enrich the community which had long been associated with deprivation and poverty?
This was God-sent wealth. Why did he prevent this wealth from reaching Maika? Imagine how much Maika would have made from these shares for which it only paid RM5 per share. When Telekom shares were “first traded it fetched a price of RM6.15 per share and that too during a bearish market. By mid-1992 the Telecoms share price was hovering around RM11-RM13,” observed Terence Gomez. According to Ram, in an article in the Aliran Monthly - 1993:13(10) - by giving away the bulk of the shares, Samy Vellu had taken away from Maika RM120 million in profit (which it would have attained had it just held on to the extra shares until then).
They Don’t Deserve 10 Million Shares
Samy Vellu made it abundantly clear that he personally decided to allocate only one million shares to Maika. According to Samy Vellu, “I could have given all the shares to Maika Holdings if not for their past business record. They don’t deserve 10 million shares because of the dismal performance of the Maika management. They have to learn to do business on their own and not depend on shares and make money out of it” (New Strait Times, 16 May 1992).
His autocratic style and arrogance comes through so forcefully: “I could have given all the shares to Maika Holdings…,” he boasts. “They don’t deserve 10 million shares…,” he berates. Mind you, he decides - not the Ministry of Finance!
It is very apparent that he keeps a very tight hold on Maika. That being the case, how could Maika undertake any business venture without his knowledge and blessing? Shouldn’t he be part of the debacle that is haunting Maika today? Shouldn’t he also shoulder the blame for “the dismal performance of the Maika management”? And why should he give nine million shares to three obscure companies, two of which were in fact shell companies with paid-up capital of RM2 each? He did it on his own, without authority or directive from the Central Working Committee. And what was the rational for doing so?
And who lied to the Finance Ministry that these “three companies represented the interests of the Indian community”? What was the motive for diverting nine million shares to three private companies? Those who sought to find the answers were threatened or beaten up. One brave soul who went on a crusade to expose this scandal was stabbed in Penang. Whenever questions regarding Maika were raised at MIC meetings presided by Samy Vellu, it was alleged that thugs would suddenly appear beside the person asking the question and that would be the end of the affair to seek answers.
Some years ago, it was claimed that at one paricular MIC meeting at the Dewan Sri in Penang, chaired by Samy Vellu, a Maika shareholder wanted to know the position of Maika. It was alleged that Samy Vellu told this shareholder that he would provide the answer after the adjournment for refreshment. In the meantime two thugs confronted this shareholder and told him that if he wanted to return home in one piece it was the right time to go home. When the meeting resumed, Samy Vellu reportedly called for the shareholder to repeat his query. But since he wasn’t there, Samy Vellu continued with his meeting without touching on the subject of Maika.
Highly Questionable
It was alleged that Samy Vellu’s son and brother-in-law were directors of of the RM2 companies, SB Management Services Sdn Bhd and Advance Personal Computers Sdn Bhd. which received three million shares each. The third company that received the remaining three million shares was Clearway Sdn Bhd. How these companies disposed of these shares and the manner the profits were channelled to Maju Institute of Education and Development (MIED) were highly questionable. Millions of ringgit were given to MIED in cash. In this day and age one has every right to suspect such transactions. Do you carry millions of ringgit in your person to pay to an educational institution? For God's sake, there is such a thing as bank transfers!
Let’s for a moment try to be logical. How did these companies come to possess this amount of money before it was handed over to MIED? They must have been paid in cheques when they sold the Telekom shares. Does it mean that they went to the bank, cashed the cheques and carried the millions of ringgit, presumably in a bag, as one crazy Malaysian guy did in Australia? This seems far fetched!
What is puzzling is the fact that in spite of so much overwhelming evidence, the Anti Corruption Agency (ACA) after 17 months of investigation cleared Samy Vellu of any wrong-doing but unfortunately without clearing the doubts in the minds of the Malaysians, as was observed by Aliran Monthly. Who Benefits From Share Allocations? But the larger question as to how and why political parties are allocated shares that are monoploised by the connected few have not been addressed. These allocations are never revealed and it is not possible to know which crony benefits and by how much. This system has led to abuses and effectively blocks the wealth from reaching a wider circle of deserving citizens.
Even the former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, when queried on the issue, confirmed the lack of accountability being practised by government leaders. Mahathir’s twisted logic for not interfering with Samy Vellu’s decision in connection with the allocation of shares for the Indians was: “I cannot interfere in this matter because I also don’t want non-bumiputras to question how we distribute the shares among our community.” (The Star, 14 May 1992) He wasn’t bothered whether the benefits reached the right people. He wasn’t concerned if there was a corrupt practice in place. The policy seemed to be one of non-interference when wealth resources were allocated, particularly under questionable circumstances.
Maika Scandal Refuses To Be Buried
In spite of 10 years of history, the Maika scandal refuses to be buried. It keeps on surfacing, haunting and hounding the perpetrators of a crime that robbed the poor of their fair share of their due. Ten years ago the Aliran Monthly had rightly observed, “The controversy surrounding the Maika-Telekom shares scandal appears to be far from over.” Maika will be holding its Annual General Meeting on December 19, 2003 in Kuala Lumpur. As far as we know, no shareholder seems to have received any Notice of Meeting. Neither have they received the Annual Report nor the Statement of Accounts. And today is December 17, 2003. (This AGM has now been postponed to December 30, 2003) How many shareholders are aware of this meeting? And what can they discuss without the benefit of the annual report and the statement of accounts? Will the shareholders be free from intimidation to raise relevant questions? Will they receive honest answers? But answers may not be found at this AGM. What could this AMG reveal that the previous AGMs failed to disclose? It is, therefore, a matter of urgent concern that the Maika scandal be re-investigated seriously. Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, our new Prime Minister who seems to be on a crusade to wipe out corruption, should order the ACA to reopen this case. The poor Indians have turned to him as a last resort for help. Many of them had lost almost everything in investing in the Maika shares. All they want is the return of their investment. Justice must be done to them. Will he respond?
ABOVE & BELOW: Launching the BIG BOOK by Tunku Sofiah Jewa.(who?)
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