This is part of his tentative exit strategy, he disclosed, during two telephone calls late yesterday to Malaysiakini.
He intends to be extremely careful with the timing in order to prevent the MIC from descending into a prolonged state of "chaos, disunity and instability" after his departure.
"I will take the two months off from my duties as MIC president to let (G) Palanivel, my deputy, fill in for me during my absence," said Samy.
"I won't be trying him out during the two months like what Mahathir did with Anwar Ibrahim."
Samy Vellu (left) was following up on a statement by Palanivel that "the ball is now in Samy Vellu's court".Earlier, underlining that a transition was more imminent than ever, Samy Vellu had told the media figuratively: "I will ask Palanivel whether he is ready to take over as MIC president. If he says he's ready, I will go the next day, perhaps even the same day itself".
Palanivel responded with his much talked about "ball" idiom but added, "I am sure the president knows what to do. It's not as if someone has to tell him. I am ready to take over anytime he says so. Meanwhile, I will continue working as usual".
'Won't destroy successors like others'
Samy Vellu reiterated that he has no plans to come back after the proposed two months and find fault with Palanivel, again referring to the Mahathir script with Anwar.
For better or worse, Palanivel will step into the president's post, assured Samy, "and I have no intention of destroying my deputy like what Mahathir did to all his potential successors and even his successor, all hand-picked by him, not the party members".
"Even if Palanivel (right) is found wanting, I will hold my peace. Whether he fares well or does badly is up to him," said Samy Vellu in defining the importance of loyalty and standing by his men through thick and thin."I cannot support him for the deputy presidency and then later turn around and claim that he's not really suitable to be the MIC president. I don't play such evil games. We are people with human feelings."
His veiled reference to his former boss, Dr Mahathir Mohamad, was unmistakably clear although no names were mentioned.
The tentative exit strategy, as laid out by Samy Vellu, sees him going on leave probably during the January-February period next year.
He is expected to resume his duties as MIC president before his birthday on March 8.
Asked what he would be doing "over the next three months" if all goes according to plan, Samy stressed that he has loads of work to clear so that Palanivel's planned two-month takeover of his presidential duties would not be too taxing "since he has to carry on with the deputy president's duties at the same time".
No long goodbye
It has not been decided whether Palanivel would be acting president as well during the two-month stint besides being deputy president or would just continue in his elected role while merely standing in for the president.
The party will be guided by the MIC constitution on the matter, added Samy Vellu.
"This is a first for MIC. We haven't had this situation for a very long time."
The MIC president recalled that he only became acting president in 1979 when the then president, V Manickavasagam, suddenly passed away half-way through his term.
The MIC president has not worked out a firm date for stepping down from his post after he resumes his presidential duties after the two-month stint envisaged for his deputy.
All he knows is that it would be somewhere in between March next year and 2012 when his term as president ends.
However, he envisages his departure would not be too far off from March next year and not near the end of his term.
He does not plan to hold out for the kind of long goodbye that Mahathir tearfully negotiated with Umno.
It will be a dignified exit, according to Samy Vellu.
"Palanivel would need a reasonable time as acting president before he seeks his own mandate," said Samy.
"Since he's new he can't expect to be returned unchallenged. There would many willing to take him on. So it would help if he can quickly establish a track record in the presidential office. For that, he has to be seen as the president in the eyes of the members."
Dr M, Umno kept MIC down
Samy Vellu agrees that he has been in the MIC president's post longer than he or anyone else intended but makes no apologies for this.
He genuinely believed he could make a historic difference.
"I had a deputy president who was just willing to be my number two for 25 years," said Samy Vellu.
"That's because he doesn't really see himself as number one. I figured him out a long time ago.
"He lacks the drive to be number one. If at all he went for my post it was simply because of betting groups around him pushing him into the arena."
"If I had my way, I wouldn't want someone being my deputy for such a long time but that was what the party members wanted. In the MIC, we don't destroy people for the sake of destroying them. The same thing with me staying on for three decades."
It was to re-create a party in perpetual renewal that future MIC presidents' term of office would be limited, after recent amendments to the party constitution, to three terms or nine years, said Samy Vellu.
"This would create a more dynamic leadership environment where there would be the possibility of upward mobility in leadership and change all the time to create opportunities for newcomers."
He agrees that he has not made as much a difference as he would have liked in the Indian community but says his hands were tied by the system and blames Mahathir and Umno for this.
The reaction as everybody knows, according to Samy Vellu, was the arrival of Hindraf (Hindu Rights Action Front) on the scene.
'Dr M did least for Indians'
"I am not trying to make up stories just as he (Mahathir) has been casting me as a liability to BN," said Samy Vellu.
"The fact is that he as the prime minister was not at all interested in any of the legitimate demands and aspirations of the Indian community and in fact did the least of all the prime ministers for the Indian community. So I did what I could for the community on my own through my NGO networking."
He is confident that historians and future generations will be able to judge him better.
Samy Vellu said he has no defence whatsoever against Mahathir's constant accusations against him - "and he knows that" - because the cabinet papers are classified as official secrets.
These papers, it is said, provide all the solid proof on what transpired during cabinet meetings and "what I brought up on behalf of the Indian community".
Mahathir however told the people of Sungai Siput on the eve of the general elections last year that "Samy Vellu did not even open his mouth on Indian matters during cabinet meetings".
Eventually, many did not believe Mahathir's statement on Samy Vellu's silence, seeing it on further reflection as a gross exaggeration but the damage was done because of the timing.
The net effect was that Samy Vellu lost his parliamentary seat for the first time in his political career but isn't crying over spilt milk.
There's life after retirement
Apparently, Samy won't be walking off into the sunset after he leaves his duties as MIC president.
He sees himself being busy with "the six or seven NGOs" - not related to MIC - which he has set up over the years.
He has no intention to give up his duties here for the moment and will continue to be very actively involved especially in matters of education and the co-operative movement.
The NGOS will also be his refuge during his planned two months leave from his duties as MIC president.
Samy Vellu, elsewhere, has plans to pen his memoirs in English and Tamil, with translations to follow in Malay, Chinese, Iban and KadazanDusun.
"This would be my contribution towards the education of our younger and future generations in the history and politics of Malaysia," said Samy.
"Many things are yet to be written. One idea is to first serialise my memoirs every two weeks in the newspapers. I have a lot to tell."
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