Media Statement (2) by Lim Kit Siang in Petaling Jaya on Friday, 16^th April 2010: 

Samy Vellu and Palanivel have completely lost face in the Hulu Selangor Barisan Nasional candidature farce while Umno hegemony in BN has reached new apex

MIC President Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu and his deputy Datuk G. Palanivel have completely lost face in the Hulu Selangor by-election Barisan Nasional candidature farce while Umno hegemony in Barisan Nasional has reached new apex.

This is the most shameful and humiliating episode in the history of MIC, one of the oldest political parties in Malaysia, which was founded as far back as August 1946.

In the 64-year history of MIC, was there a single time that the MIC could not decide and determine who should be its parliamentary or state assembly candidate – that its choice could be blocked and vetoed by other political parties including UMNO.

If this had never happened before, why is it happening in the long 31-year reign of Samy Vellu as MIC President?

This is most ironic. The UMNO and BN leadership continue to the blind and deaf to the message of the March 8 political tsunami of the 2008 general elections two years ago – which is a massive national vote against Umno political hegemony both in Barisan Nasional and in Malaysian politics.

Ironically, the Palanivel-Kamalanathan candidature farce has seen Umno’s hegemonic grip in Barisan Nasional reaching new dimensions, as all the other Barisan Nasional component parties, whether MIC, MCA, Gerakan or the Sabah and Sarawak component parties have never been so weak and emasculated in their history as compared to Umno’s over-reaching hegemony in the BN coalition.

Now, Umno is not only usurping the right of individual BN component parties to determine who should be their candidates, but also taking over their right to determine the leaderships in the other BN component parties.

In eliminating Palanivel as a candidate in the Hulu Selangor parliamentary by-election, the Umno leadership has virtually delivered a death knell to the political future of Samy’s heir-designate in MIC.

No wonder Palanivel was not present at the Barisan Nasional function in Ulu Selangor yesterday to announce the BN candidate.

No wonder Samy Vellu quickly announced that he would not seek re-election when his term of office as MIC President ends in 2012, when he had earlier promised to hand over the MIC Presidency to Palanivel before the expiry of his term.

The writing on the wall is clear – Palanivel has been eliminated not only as the BN candidate for Hulu Selangor, he has been eliminated as the successor to Samy Vellu as MIC President.

Will Palanivel drown his sorrows and setbacks with the consolation of a Senatorship with vague but clearly not-intended-to-be-fulfilled lure of a deputy ministership in exchange for his exit from the political scene?

UMNO Youth leader Khairy Jamaluddin told Sin Chew that the selection of the Hulu Selangor by-election candidate must be decided collectively by the Barisan Nasional and not alone by Umno or MIC.

Is Khairy joking or taking Malaysians for four-year-old children?

The Barisan Nasional is a coalition of 14 political parties. Is Khairy seriously suggesting that apart from Umno objecting to Palanivel’s candidature, there were other BN component parties who objected? MCA? Gerakan? Can Khairy name them?

Can Khairy name a single instance since the formation of BN in 1973 that Umno had acted as such a “big bully” as to interfere in the selection of candidature of a BN component party by arrogating to itself the power of veto to the “one and only” candidate proposal of the BN component party?

Would Khairy agree to submit the decision-making of candidature for BN parliamentary or state assembly seats to majority decision of the Barisan Nasional parties in the BN Supreme Council – to the extent that the other BN component parties can decide by majority vote who should be the Umno President, Deputy President and UMNO Youth leader?

Khairy is just adding salt into the wounds of the MIC leaders and members, divisions and branches.

*Lim Kit Siang, DAP Parliamentary Leader & MP for Ipoh Timor