Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak has launched the Malaysian Indian Blueprint (MIB) as another serious attempt to support the Indian community. However, MIC has a long record of failures which is worrying the people at large. Some successes have also come their way which includes formation of the AIMST University, Tafe College and the MIED (Maju Institute of Educational Development), but a lot of people have already dismissed the MIB as an election ploy for GE14.

The Indian community’s poor standing can be traced back to the formation of the MIC in 1946 by Dr. John Thivy and other renowned leaders of the community. In the beginning, it was lead by a group of English-taught Indians, and they were determined on serving the community. The group had the mission and vision for Indians when they established the MIC and being well-educated they had the upper hand over the stronger presence of the Malays and Chinese and their political parties.

The shift after Merdeka when the Tamil-educated groups took over the MIC was a downward spiral. The group had no vision for the community, and the group was weak enough to be subdued to play a subordinate role. Unlike the previous leaders, Tamil-educated leaders had no foresight or insight about the progress of the community.

When change came in the estates beginning from the 1980s, the Indians were completely unaware and ultimately landed in the pitiable condition they are experiencing now. Even the issue of citizenship that was way easier during 1980 was not given sufficient attention by the MIC leaders, and the citizenship issue remains till today.

A strong political party that is blessed with well-educated and visionary leaders helps a community to progress, and it is the other way round if it becomes a party of self-seekers. Through the MIB, MIC has a final chance to redeem and save itself from becoming history after the debacle of the last decade.