The Hindraf chief says the PM is using Khairy as a shield against criticism.
PETALING JAYA: Hindraf chairman P Waythamoorthy has demanded a public admission from Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak that he had reneged on his promises to the Indian community.
In a media statement released today, he said Najib must admit that he had been too weak to honour the memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Hindraf that he signed before the 13th general election.
Referring to yesterday’s statement by Khairy Jamaluddin, he said the Umno Youth leader was being used by Najib as a shield against criticism.
“Khairy’s irrational defence of his boss is immature and imprudent,” he said in the statement.
“Would Khairy be able to perform if his ministry’s budget is taken away?”
Khairy, who is Youth and Sports Minister, said on Twitter that Waythamoorthy, while serving as a deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (PMO), had demanded control over all government budgets for the Indian community.
Waythamoorthy said Khairy “should read the MOU first and understand what his boss committed himself to.”
He added: “The entire Cabinet should be embarrassed that their boss reneged on his promises to the Indian community.”
Waythamoorthy said Najib expressed admiration for Hindraf’s proposed socio-economic programmes when he submitted them in the first month of his service with the Prime Minister’s Department.
Najib was equally amazed that hundreds of volunteers and experts in various fields were offering to help the government and Hindraf implement a “comprehensive and practical plan” for the benefit of Indians, he added.
“The Prime Minister committed himself to a special unit to be headed by a director-general and four assistant directors-general with a minimum of 50 team members to be set up within the PMO to oversee the various socio-economic problems faced by the Indian community,” he said.
“The unit would be given a special budget with autonomy to enable it to carry out its tasks in a focused and targeted manner.”
He said he tried for eight months to persuade Najib to fulfil his commitments, but “the Prime Minister did not do anything proactive to make the unit and budget a reality.”
“It became very clear to me there was no political will on his part.”
He said he explained to Najib how various government agencies had failed to deliver their service to the Indian community.
“An example is the Education Ministry’s failure to provide Tamil schools with proper infrastructure and the lack of scholarships and education placement in public universities and matriculation.
“The Agriculture Ministry, for example, failed to provide alternatives for the displaced plantation workers.
“The relevant government agencies and Menteris Besar of the various states also failed to provide land both for economic as well as settlement of Indian labourers displaced from estates after having served the nation four to five generations.”
Meanwhile, DAP vice chairman M Kulasegaran called upon Najib to apologise to the Indian community for betraying the trust given in the previous general election.
“The prime minister must realise that his commitment was to the Indian community, not Hindraf. Najib must apologise for his historic act of betrayal,” he said.
Kulasegaran, who is also Ipoh Barat MP, said that it was now proven that Hindraf made a mistake in trusting Najib, who is not really keen in addressing the plight of the minority group.
“And it is proven when Najib did not even try to dissuade Waythamoorthy from quitting his post. With the general election over, Hindraf has outlived its usefulness for the government,” he said.
PETALING JAYA: Hindraf chairman P Waythamoorthy has demanded a public admission from Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak that he had reneged on his promises to the Indian community.In a media statement released today, he said Najib must admit that he had been too weak to honour the memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Hindraf that he signed before the 13th general election.
Referring to yesterday’s statement by Khairy Jamaluddin, he said the Umno Youth leader was being used by Najib as a shield against criticism.
“Khairy’s irrational defence of his boss is immature and imprudent,” he said in the statement.
“Would Khairy be able to perform if his ministry’s budget is taken away?”
Khairy, who is Youth and Sports Minister, said on Twitter that Waythamoorthy, while serving as a deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (PMO), had demanded control over all government budgets for the Indian community.
Waythamoorthy said Khairy “should read the MOU first and understand what his boss committed himself to.”
He added: “The entire Cabinet should be embarrassed that their boss reneged on his promises to the Indian community.”
Waythamoorthy said Najib expressed admiration for Hindraf’s proposed socio-economic programmes when he submitted them in the first month of his service with the Prime Minister’s Department.
Najib was equally amazed that hundreds of volunteers and experts in various fields were offering to help the government and Hindraf implement a “comprehensive and practical plan” for the benefit of Indians, he added.
“The Prime Minister committed himself to a special unit to be headed by a director-general and four assistant directors-general with a minimum of 50 team members to be set up within the PMO to oversee the various socio-economic problems faced by the Indian community,” he said.
“The unit would be given a special budget with autonomy to enable it to carry out its tasks in a focused and targeted manner.”
He said he tried for eight months to persuade Najib to fulfil his commitments, but “the Prime Minister did not do anything proactive to make the unit and budget a reality.”
“It became very clear to me there was no political will on his part.”
He said he explained to Najib how various government agencies had failed to deliver their service to the Indian community.
“An example is the Education Ministry’s failure to provide Tamil schools with proper infrastructure and the lack of scholarships and education placement in public universities and matriculation.
“The Agriculture Ministry, for example, failed to provide alternatives for the displaced plantation workers.
“The relevant government agencies and Menteris Besar of the various states also failed to provide land both for economic as well as settlement of Indian labourers displaced from estates after having served the nation four to five generations.”
Meanwhile, DAP vice chairman M Kulasegaran called upon Najib to apologise to the Indian community for betraying the trust given in the previous general election.
“The prime minister must realise that his commitment was to the Indian community, not Hindraf. Najib must apologise for his historic act of betrayal,” he said.
Kulasegaran, who is also Ipoh Barat MP, said that it was now proven that Hindraf made a mistake in trusting Najib, who is not really keen in addressing the plight of the minority group.
“And it is proven when Najib did not even try to dissuade Waythamoorthy from quitting his post. With the general election over, Hindraf has outlived its usefulness for the government,” he said.
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