S. SOTHINATHAN is a fixture in Anwar Ibrahim’s daily rounds in Port Dickson.

Though a decade has passed since the former MIC vice-president served as MP of the constituency once known as Teluk Kemang, Sothinathan is still considered by many Indians as having clout.

He is helping the PKR president-elect engage with the community, and has spoken at campaign ceramah attended by a good number of Indians.

Sothinathan, who made his ceramah debut in Sri Tanjung on Sunday, said among the problems faced by Indians in Port Dickson are a low employment rate and floods.

“People here are suffering. There needs to be flood mitigation in places like Bagan Pinang and Lukut.

“There is also the problem of scarce employment opportunities, resulting in the youngsters leaving Port Dickson. We need to create jobs and bring them back.”

The October 13 by-election will see a seven-cornered fight between Pakatan Harapan’s Anwar, Mohd Nazari Mokhtar of PAS and five independent candidates, including former Negri Sembilan menteri besar Isa Samad, and Anwar’s former aide and sodomy accuser Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan.

Sothinathan said his motive for helping Anwar is clear, and that he wants to help the constituency he once led.

“Anwar invited me for a chat before nomination day. I agreed to help. This is good for everyone in the constituency. There is nothing to hide here,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

As for Isa, his previous ally in Barisan Nasional, Sothinathan said there is no animosity between the former Umno leader and Anwar, but added that the latter is the way forward.

“He (Isa) is a very good friend of mine. But for the good of Port Dickson, it must be Anwar. The prime minister-in-waiting is coming to Port Dickson.”

Sothinathan has a following among the Indian community not just in Port Dickson, but also the rest of the country.

Many remember the incident in Parliament that led to him being suspended as deputy minister, after the controversial withdrawal of recognition of the Crimea State Medical University, where many Indian students were undergraduates.

Sothinathan’s attack on the government decision during a parliamentary debate earned him a two-week suspension – and the admiration of Indians. Up till that point, it had been unheard of for an MIC leader to thumb his nose at the Umno-led government.

He said he left MIC two months after the 14th general election, and does not want to be drawn into discussions on the future of the party that he had been a part of for decades.

“I have left and moved on. When I agreed to help Anwar, I did not expect anything in return. I am not joining the party (PKR),” said Sothinathan, who runs a law firm in Kuala Lumpur. – October 5, 2018.