‘Lavish’ MIC AGM draws flak

The allegations include the booking of five-star hotel rooms for delegates, and RM800,000 for 'goodie bags'.

KUALA LUMPUR: MIC’s 65th annual general meeting slated for this weekend is being touted as a lavish affair, with some alleging that it cost RM2 million.

However, the party’s treasurer-general Jaspal Singh denied this.

“It is lesser than RM2 million,” he said, but declined to reveal the actual amount.

Instead of holding it in the Putra World Trade Centre as done in previous years, MIC president G Palanivel, who will be chairing his first AGM, has decided to move the meeting to the administrative capital.
The two-day event will be held at the Putrajaya International Covention Centre (PICC). It is learnt that MIC has booked three halls at a cost of RM90,000 per day for its annual meeting.

Justifying the change of venue, MIC secretary-general S Murugesan said in the past only 1,500 delegates attended but this time around, a total of 3,700 branch chairmen will be present.

FMT also learnt that MIC has booked five-star hotel rooms for those attending but Jaspal denied that all the rooms are in five-star hotels.

“We booked rooms at five-star hotels that offer three-star prices,” he said, adding that the delegates will be housed in hotels located in Putrajaya and Kajang.

‘RM800,000 for goodie bags’

Another startling allegation was that the “goodie bags” for the delegates cost around RM200 a piece, bringing the total to nearly RM800,000.

The bag alone, said a central working committee (CWC) member, cost around RM50 and was purchased by Jaspal in China.

“This is pure nonsense. Must we spend so much of money on ‘goodie bags’? Why do these branch chairmen need five-star hotel rooms?

“Can’t we use it for something more constructive to help the community?” asked the CWC member, who declined to be named.

However, Jaspal denied that the bag cost RM50 a piece, but once again declined to state the actual price.

‘Baiting branch chiefs’ votes’

Meanwhile, the CWC member claimed that “a fortune was being spent” to bait the branch chairmen, who will be voting in the party’s presidential election.

He said since Palanivel, who succeeded S Samy Vellu last year, is facing a possible three-cornered fight for the top post, he needed to get into the branch chairmens’ good books.

“In the past, he has been winning the number two post because of Samy Vellu. But now there are rumours that even the former president is peeved with his successor over numerous issues.

“Even those in MIC are not comfortable with the media-shy Palanivel’s leadership style,” he added.
Speculation is rife that Palanivel will be challenged by two Subramaniams, current deputy president Dr S Subramaniam, who is said to be Samy Vellu’s present preferred choice, and former number two S Subramaniam.

The CWC member warned that the extravagant affair is bound to rile up the Indian community, and added that there is no point in becoming popular in MIC when the community loses faith in the leadership.

Another MIC grassroots leader, who also declined to be named, said that it is wrong to spend such a huge sum on the AGM when poor Indian students are struggling for scholarships to pursue their education.

“Even the prime minister has asked us to be more prudent in our spending so we should have cut down on the expense for the AGM and use the remaining money to help poor students.

“It would have been better for Palanivel to present the cheques to the students during the AGM instead of booking expensive hotel rooms,” he added.

Text message: Discard MIC

With two days to go before the AGM, there is also a text message being circulated calling on the Indian community to turn their backs on MIC.

The text message reads: “MIC achivements: In 1958, Malaysian Indian equity was 28% and today dropped to 1.1%, Indian population before independence 24% and today 7.9%, our graduates in 1955 was 34%, and now 0.9%.”

The text message also noted that in the early 1960s, the Indian community owned three banks and 37% of land titles, which has now dropped to 0.85%.

Stating that the number of Tamil schools have also dropped from 1,023 to 523, the text message stated: “By trusting MIC, we have lost 90% of our rights.”