Forget the past and vote BN, Zahid tells Indians

Low Han Shaun Low Han Shaun Updated 8 years ago · Published on 31 Jan 2018 12:50PM · 3 Comments

A devotee getting some help to lift his kavadi at the Sri Subramaniar temple in Batu Caves, Selangor, during Thaipusam celebrations today. Hindus are urged to back the Barisan Nasional government at the next elections. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Hasnoor Hussain, January 31, 2018.

INDIAN Malaysians were today urged to “close old books” and forget past disagreements as the country heads towards the 14th general election.

This was the message from Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in his speech at the 128th Thaipusam ceremony in Batu Caves, Selangor, where he also told the crowd to back Barisan Nasional in GE14.

This, said Zahid, is to ensure that the interests of Indian Malaysians are maintained.

“With the commitment from the current government, I hope that the Indians will close old books. Any disagreement that you have, forget about it.

“For the next big day, we must support Barisan Nasional under the leadership of Prime Minister Najib Razak,” he said.

Indian Malaysians make up just more than two million of the population of 31 million in 2016.

Zahid added that he would talk to Prime Minister Najib Razak and allocate RM2 million to improve Batu Caves as a better tourist hot spot.

“I will talk to the government and will personally whisper to Najib Razak to allocate two million more from the RM25 million allocated to improve the Batu Caves temple.

“We will build a cultural complex that is expected to finish on June 3… and I promise you the two million   will be approved within a week,” he said.

Najib previously announced more than RM1 billion in allocations under the Malaysian Indian Blueprint to address the community’s problems, such as basic needs, education, increase employment and entrepreneurship, and social inclusion. 

Najib also promised to set up a special approval system for the citizenship of Indians who arrived before 1957.

Last year, 2,500 stateless Indians born before Merdeka applied for citizenship. – January 31, 2018.

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Comments

  • Well the exact same phrase could be used to say forget the past against Tun M isnt it? Whatever BN can do PH can do maybe even better. This is because govt funds does not belong to BN and they are insincere and have run out of fresh ideas. PH have talented members and supporters and most importantly sincerity to serve the people. The fact is the people must know whoever is the government will be able to provide funds for the people and the most important thing is to do it without wastages and corruption. We will see better days if there is a change. Who would want to ruin the chance to be a good government. Any disputes will be resolved. It is just mainstream media may not air BN’s dirty laundry in public but in politics disagreements happen in any country. Look at Germany recently with hung Parliament, US Federal shutdown, Brexit... they still move on. Nothing will collapse under PH unless BN sabtages it.

    Posted 8 years ago by Gerald Mak · Reply

  • Learn from the past and vote for a better future. Our Indian Community has been marginalized. Please vote carefully to safe guard yours and children's future. Do not allow politician with fork tongue (snake tongue) to sway your vote.

    Posted 8 years ago by Chris Ng · Reply

  • Last week i heard that there there was a special allocation to indians in the Amanah Saham 1 Malaysia scheme worth billions, this week i heard that the courts reached a verdict that was favourable to the indians in the indira gandhi case, and today Zahid says this.

    I don't think there are any leader today, be they in the opposition or the government, who have such weight in their word, that the people will trust that they will keep their word, even if the promises they make today will only be realised in future.

    I think the people - be they indians or malays and chinese - only trust our leaders enough, be they from the opposition of the government , to deliver their promises in the here and now.

    If people believe that the opposition is their champion, and once the opposition is in power, will undo all the wrong that has been done to them, and work for their benefit, i think they will support the opposition. If the people believe that the opposition is not their champion, but that the opposition will need its support to gain power, then the people will expect the opposition to do something for the the people right now itself, before the people will do the opposition a favour.

    I think it has been years since the people see the opposition as their champion - so i don't think the people will see putting the opposition in power as equal to putting in power their champions or putting someone who will look after their benefit in power.

    It has been 10 years since 2008, 10 long years since people were seized by a desire to change, and figured that the opposition is the vehicle that will deliver them the change they desire.

    10 years later, i think the opposition and the government , roughly looks the same in the people's eyes - with the opposition perhaps faring a little better, because the opposition is not as tainted as the government is by corruption and inefficiencies.

    Seeing that opposition is no longer seen by the people either as a champion of a vehicle for change - i think the opposition will just have to pay the people, just as the government is paying the people, to support it in the next election.

    I think the view today is that the government and the opposition are just the "bosses" - and in considering bosses, the ones that pays the most is the one that is considered the best .

    Posted 8 years ago by Nehru Sathiamoorthy · Reply