Wanted: A compliant Indian for the job of party president

By Baradan Kuppusamy - The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 16 — The post of president of a newly-formed and officially recognised political party is vacant and on offer to any individual qualified to head and lead the party, according to key members of the party who are offering the post to various individuals.

Some individuals see the offer as a unique opportunity to join the exclusive “president’s club” and rub shoulders with the country’s political elite and especially to get to know Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

They also see the post as an opportunity to move up the business ladder.

Others, however, are shying away after being told the prerequisites that come with the post.

Although nominally multi-racial, only Indians are offered the post. Experience is unnecessary but the candidate must have roots in the Hindraf movement.

Other requirements include one that the successful candidate as president must follow the advice of the party’s deputy president. He must also be pro-Barisan Nasional (BN) but also appear to be standing up to Umno.

He must not hog the limelight but share the stage with the deputy president and his supporters especially during party functions like when garlanding Najib and his wife.

Businessman R.S. Thanenthiran (picture) might be the nominal president of the Malaysia Makkal Sakthi Party (MMSP) but a major breakaway faction led by deputy president A. Vathemurthy is finding him wanting on many fronts and ready to remove him.

But before that they have approached several individuals offering the president’s post.

“I don’t want to be the president,” Vathemurthy said, adding he is happy being a deputy president. “We have a majority on our side and we will remove him.”

“We need a new president to forge ahead,” he said recently.

He said the party is firmly united and ready to serve the Indian community and help BN recover lost support but the problem is Thanenthiran, whom he says is unfit for the job.

Thanenthiran, on the other hand, has dismissed Vathemurthy’s entire allegation, saying “outsiders” were using him to overthrow him.

The rebels have called for an emergency meeting of the 27-member central committee of the MSSP on Dec 19 when they hope to remove Thanenthiran and install their new president.

The showdown can go either way. In the meantime the job as president is now on the market.

According to secretary-general Kannan Ramasamy, the meeting will hopefully settle the issue once and for all. “We want to move on with our mission and not be sidetracked by the leadership tussle.”

Among the dozen or so people offered the job are Klang businessman Omms Thiagarajan and former Federal Territory MIC chief Datuk V.K.K. Teagarajan, Hindraf founder chairman P. Waythamoorthy and his brother Uthayakumar, who has formed his own Human Rights Party Malaysia but is said to be attracted to the Makkal Sakthi banner because of the name and legal status.

The job was also offered to other Hindraf leaders like Vasantha Kumar, who has since joined PKR, and Ganapathy Rao, nominally with the DAP.

The leading contender however is a political novice, Omms Thiagarajan, who has been fingered by Thanenthiran as the main culprit behind Vathemurthy’s rebellion.

Omms is close to MIC deputy president Datuk S. Subramaniam and MSSP sources said he wants to take over the MSSP and keep it for Subramaniam in case the latter is sacked from the MIC or decides to resign.

Subramaniam however is unpopular among supporters of the Hindraf movement who see him as a “say nothing, see nothing and hear nothing” leader.

“He is a spineless and clueless leader and we want to have nothing to do with him,” a senior MMSP leader said. “But if Omms (Thiagarajan) wants the post we are willing to help him.”

The reasons, he said, is that Omms is wealthy, popular among Indians for his philanthropic deeds, is young and has grassroots support.

“We can forge ahead with him as president but not Thanenthiran or Subramaniam,” said the MMSP leader. “Subramaniam is a spent force and Thanenthiran is all out for himself not us, the party or the community.”

But for their grand plans to mature, the Vathemurthy faction has to overcome the first hurdle — remove Thanenthiran first before they can offer the post to anybody.

MSSP sources said the Dec 19 showdown can go either way because both factions are feverishly wooing the 27 members of the party's central committee.

Both factions are confident they have a majority to remove the other side.