By Baradan Kuppusamy - The Malaysian Insider
Samy Vellu is forced to see his legacy unraveling. — file pic
At least three other former Samy Vellu loyalists and MIED directors also are expected to quit, leaving the president to grapple with mounting problems — legal, accounting and financial — in the twilight of his political life.
Tan Sri Datuk M. Mahalingam, Tan Sri G. Vadiveloo and Tan Sri K. Kumaran who had helped to saved Samy Vellu and advanced his career are now implacably against him, along with his former blue-eyed girl, former MIED CEO P. Chitrakala.
At the heart of the dispute is the millions of ringgit taken out as loans, and the alleged mismanagement of the RM1 billion AIMST University.
In addition, MIED or its subsidiaries failed to follow basic company reporting procedures by not holding proper meetings, submitting financial accounts or annual reports.
MIED is now trying to work backwards and hold annual meetings, pass resolutions and prepare accounts for three or four years in a row.
It is trying to hold one staggered-out meeting to cover four or five annual general meetings.
MIED trustee Tan Sri KS Nijhar has confirmed that Dr Ampikaipakan resigned last week, but does not know the reasons.
The MIC is awash with speculation that the respected chest specialist was “unwilling” to go along with some moves by the MIED.
“He and others are resigning to extricate themselves out of the mess that is the MIED,” said a MIC leader.
“They don’t want to take the blame for the mess which is Samy Vellu’s making,” he said. “Samy Vellu and Chitrakala ran the show together, and the directors and trustees all played along.”
“Now the two are at each other’s throats and we are left holding the ball,” said the leader referring to suits, counter suits and police reports that Samy Vellu and Chitrakala have filed against each other.
Nijhar, who broke away from Samy Vellu several times, has returned to stand by the embattled president and MIC sources say he is helping him to “iron out the legal, accounting and financial” quagmire the president is caught in.
The MIED, which operates with government grants, public donations and MIC funds, is in debt with Bank Pembangunan Bhd for about RM260 million.
But MIC sources say it also has RM100 million in fixed deposits with a leading bank.
Last year, Samy Vellu attempted to take the MIED and other projects he had started as MIC president like the Koperasi Didik and Tafe College, away from the MIC and under a new body headed by him, arguing that these entities were private and had no legal links with the MIC or Indian community.
The move sparked a storm of protest. Samy Vellu appears to have dropped the idea but has not said so in so many words.
Umno is also having a headache as to how it can ease the veteran out of the MIC and allow his deputy Datuk G. Palanivel to take over in time to reform and prepare the MIC for the next general election.
Samy Vellu has not given a firm date to leave and has been giving various excuses to stay on even as everything that he built in his 30 years as MIC president is unraveling around him.
“As long as he stays on, we will never have a chance to win back the support of the Indian community,” said an MIC leader.
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