IN a pre-election rally at the PWTC five years ago, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak asked the Indian community to decide on their future if it would be with the Barisan Nasional or outside. The community sent a message on March 8, 2008 that it would be outside the Barisan and voted in large numbers for Pakatan Rakyat.
In spite of this rejection, Barisan which managed to retain the Federal Government, began a series of initiatives to win the hearts and minds of the Indian community over the next five years.
That day, Najib spoke about birth certificates and identification cards, Tamil school education, civil service employment opportunities, better access to scholarships, micro credit, youth training opportunities, places of worship and local training of temple priests. It was a wide range of issues and promises he highlighted and made.
It is fair to state that with regards to the Indian community, he has kept his word.
Where have they been successful?
In 2008, a Cabinet committee on Indian issues was established with Najib chairing it, starting while he was Deputy Prime Minister and later as Prime Minister. A Special Implementation Task Force was established for the first time at the PM's Department with full-time staff attached to the Pemandu team. Indian concerns were now being regarded not as community concerns but as national concerns with the PM having a specific preview to them directly.
One must say that the direct approach of reaching out to various sections, including sub-ethnic and splinter political groups, reflect the inclusive nature of Najib's approach. His walk-abouts, participation at Thaipusam and cultural events as well as approachable nature won many hearts for him and his administration.
While his critics claim he was merely seeking to win votes, this approach has been sustained over five years and we are seeing the impact. No longer would a political party be an ethnic gate-keeper. Now, the ordinary people, cultural groups, sub-ethnic communities and religious groups have direct contact, access and dealings with the PM and his office.
Some say this is divide-and-rule but what has emerged is a different style of leadership one of reaching out directly and viewing community concerns as national concerns in addressing the struggles of the Indian community, especially those of displaced plantation workers who have been badly neglected in the policy and delivery process.
Over the years, three major areas have become the focus of attention.
Tamil school development: Prof N. S. Rajendran of UPSI was appointed to undertake a comprehensive study on improving the quality of teaching and learning. Huge sums of money were allocated towards improving the infrastructure of Tamil schools.
However, there are still many schools, especially in rural areas, with inadequate facilities. This is where the policies must be comprehensive and ensure that all streams of education are treated equally with adequate finances and resources. No child in whatever stream should be left behind but must be viewed as an asset of the nation with the ability to contribute to a high income society and not be a dependent of the state.
Citizenship Issues: Datuk Siva Subramanium, former Suhakam commissioner, was appointed to head a team to identify and resolve citizenship issues pertaining to birth registration and identification cards. This is not an easy area and work is on-going but we have seen definite results.
Business development and access to micro credit: Dr A. T. Raja was appointed to implement programmes pertaining to micro business development and access to micro loans through Yayasan Tekun. Special allocations have been made. The programmes are ongoing but the outreach must be enlarged.
Thus, there are now three non-political professionals employed by the Federal government with a team of staff to address these issues directly. This is a new development and a departure from earlier federal approaches. While we do recognise that it has not resolved all the issues, it has definitely begun to address them in a systematic and professional way.
Where are there gaps and unhappiness?
There are areas where development has been slow, like in the recruitment and promotion of staff in the civil service and GLCs. There are many complaints in this area that need to be addressed.
Issues faced by the urban poor, especially those living in high rise flats, should be addressed. Participation in crime and gang-related activities is another major area which has not been adequately addressed. Inclusion in ekasih database and access to 1azam programmes have not been very successful as the cultural dimension of alienated and marginalised communities has not been taken into account by the delivery agencies.
Another major area of unhappiness pertains to human rights violations of police abuse, death in custody and death by police shooting. Racial profiling of many Indian youths is another area of concern. The call for an independent complaints commission and the strengthening of Suhakam are highlighted as necessary to address minority concerns.
There is a need to be more inclusive in the participatory process for policy planning and review of delivery and implementation. A social dialogue process and stakeholder engagement by the federal government will be helpful. These programmes are funded by public funds and not by individuals or a political party; therefore, there must be greater collaboration with all NGOs and community groups.
Barisan Manifesto 2013 and a message of hope
On April 6, Najib made a number of specific references to the Indian community as well as some indirect ones when he presented the Barisan manifesto. This revealed his continuing commitment to the community.
One direct promise is a seed fund for RM500mil to increase the equity of the community to 3%, a figure from the Second National Economic Consultative Report (2000). This is good but a mechanism similar to PNB should be established. The government must be very careful that this is not politically hijacked by certain politicians but must be run in a professional and business-like way that benefits the community. All dealings must be transparent and accountable.
The second direct commitment in the manifesto is the establishment of a special unit to ensure successful implementation. This is good and enhances the current taskforce establishment into a more permanent set-up within the Prime Minister's department. Here, too, the Federal Government must ensure that this unit fulfils the objectives of the public and community agenda and is not hijacked by individual politicians.
There are three references to vernacular schools, in terms of change of status from partially-aided to fully-aided schools. This is a major breakthrough in the education policy and is therefore very helpful. The other is the teaching and learning of Bahasa Malaysia in vernacular schools where about 40% fail the subject at the UPSR level. This is a major development as more resources and teachers are needed. In addition, there is a promise for continuing special allocations to Tamil schools.
The recruitment programme in the civil service and GLC is promised and here is where some specific targets would have been helpful. Similar promises have been made in the Eight, Ninth and 10th Malaysia Plans but in terms of achievements, they are very slow moving.
The establishment of a new Urban Wellbeing Ministry is welcomed and all references to housing, healthcare and transport will have a significant impact on the urban poor Indian. Here, there must be a clear targeting and hand-holding process to ensure the bottom 40% can truly access the facilities. Many of these quality of life aspects are in place but not many at the bottom 40% are really benefiting and moving up the socio-economic ladder.
How then at the 13th General Election?
All voters must review the facts and achievements, recognise that work is still in progress and time is needed to fully resolve the issues and concerns. Since 2008, some major initiatives have taken place which need to be consolidated and enlarged.
In this process, receiving hand-outs alone is insufficient; basic human rights must be strengthened with a clear commitment by the Federal Government to ratify the UN Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination and the establishment of an Equal Opportunities Commission as recommended in the New Economic Model report.
Institutional reform must complement socio-economic initiatives. This will ensure long-term security for all communities, especially the poor and low income group at the bottom 40% to experience the rights as full and equal citizens in Malaysia as stated in the Federal Constitution and the universal declaration of human rights.
> Datuk Dr Denison Jayasooria is the Principal Research Fellow at the Institute of Ethnic Studies, UKM. In 2010 and 2011, he served as Secretary to the Special Implementation Taskforce on the Indian community at the Prime Minister's Department.
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