Datuk GP Now Firmly In MIC Driver's Seat

KUALA LUMPUR, March 17 (Bernama) -- Datuk G. Palanivel, who marks his first 100 days as MIC president on Thursday, has been on overdrive mode to make his leadership more people-centric, with emphasis on retraining and empowering the Indian community.

He is also in a race to put the community as quickly as possible to become the "masters of their own destiny".

By getting them to be more aware of what they need to do, it is hoped that by then the party will run like a well-oiled maintenance-free engine, all systems tweaked to work in harmonious tandem and with minimum supervision.

But while that destination is still a long, long way away, party stalwarts are confident that Palanivel will continue to be firmly in the driver's seat, an imagery that sits well with his new nickname, "Datuk GP".

Already, Datuk GP has created a record of sorts on the route he has already completed in the short space of time since he entered in what observers say is his race against time.

Why the need to race against time?

He recently told a meeting of Indian NGOs that "the dependency group among some quarters of the Indian community is growing and is a worrying trend".

"We must now quickly create opportunities for them so that they can become resilient and independent. They must be helped to stand on their own feet. They should not be a liability for themselves and to the society".

"But we will get there", said a party member, citing the success of the newly-opened MIC Service Centre at the MIC Headquarters.

Replicated after the service centre at his former Deputy Minister's post in the former Cabinet which successfully handled thousands of cases, the MIC Service Centre has few parallels in terms of organisational structure, scope of operation, transparency and unity of purpose.

Situated on the ground floor, the centre is laid out in neat rows where party volunteers with laptops meet ordinary people with problems. These problems range from matters related to Socso, EPF, Dewan Bandaraya services, housing needs, birth and citizenship certificates, education counseling, micro financing, and the full range of social services.

In each case, individual data is captured, problems identified and followed through until final closure.

But that's not all. In one section of the hall are officers from Dewan Bandaraya, and other government departments who provide immediate advice, and solutions. And they are there every Sunday, which is their normal rest day for them.

Similar centres are in operation in Seremban, Ipoh and Penang.

Because he has put the systems in place, it runs well, save the occasional and usual start-up hiccups. Party leaders, including those from Wanita MIC and Youth, who come to volunteer, are the backbone of the service centres, giving up their weekend with their families.

Datuk GP has also taken over Yayasan Strategic Sosial and is in the process of revamping it and will organise an outreach programme to service the clients.

He has put in place other measures, systems and people so that the party can somewhat run on auto pilot in several other areas as well. He encourages this auto pilot perception because this is a tried and tested way to create and nurture self-reliance.

One can only fault him for being still somewhat media-shy, despite his media background some years back, thus explaining his reticence to being over exposed on the electronic and print media.

Party insiders, who are aware of Datuk GP's working style, say the president believes in sharing and delegating responsibilities to senior party leaders as well as to grassroots workers so that they are able to exercise leadership qualities.

He believes that party power and responsibilities must be vested in the leadership team, not in the party president alone.

While he shuns publicity for himself ("my record speaks for myself", he has been known to say many times), his grip and influence on the party is strong. He holds monthly meetings with state party chairmen, holds regular brainstorming sessions with party members and non-members, sets KPIs, meets young professionals and NGO leaders, and continues to engage with members and leaders of Malaysian Indians of different language and religious denominations.

Valuable data and views gathered from these meetings are collated, categorised and analysed for the purpose of working out a long-term blueprint for the party.

To assist him in this task, he has surrounded himself with young academics and technocrats as well as consistent, persistent, well-trained and well-prepared party cadres ready to do the president's bidding at a moment's notice.

It was a coup-de-grace of sorts when he brought back to the fold people like S. Murugesan as party secretary-general and reinstating Barat Maniam, a party veteran from the Petaling Jaya Selatan division.

Among the visible markers of his 100 days in the MIC hot seat are the solid MIC votes he managed to deliver during the recent by-elections. While the inclusive policies of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak were key, the quiet confidence with which Datuk GP operated and managed to get his message across were crucial in the way he had convinced and influenced Indian voters to back Barisan Nasional.

His Community Builders Programme, which has focused on pre-school or early childhood education for many years now, has got a new shot in the arm with help from the Implementation and Co-ordination Unit (ICU) in the Prime Minister's Department. The programme is committed to providing facilities for children who would otherwise have been deprived of early education opportunities.

The Teach Malaysia programme, an initiative to upgrade performance of school going children in primary and secondary schools, and which is now in its final gestation period, will see more details to be announced soon.

At a recent session with some journalists from the Tamil language media, Datuk GP said he would like to see the party eventually become an organ to undertake studies and formulate policies, rather than rely heavily on being just a delivery channel. He also wants the party to be weaned away from its culture of aid-seeking to aid-giving.

He said: "There are some segments of the Indian community who have made it on their own, without help from the government. We want them to share their success stories with others to motivate them. We are now looking for these kinds of people who have risen from rags to riches and who are now willing to transfer their knowledge and share their experience to leave behind a legacy of self-reliance."

However fast he wants to fulfill his plans for the party and Indian community, he still faces a gargantuan task.

On the positive side, he possesses the energy and temperament to stay the course to help establish an inclusive, united, self-reliant Indian community within a united Malaysia.

What are his plans for the MIC? He says: "MIC's long-term plans are to redefine all its objectives to stay relevant to its members, to Barisan Nasional and the nation".

With Datuk GP now at the helm, MIC appears to be on the right track. Whether it can regain its past glory remains to be seen. This will depend on how he stays firmly in his driver's seat to drive the party forward.