A Kedah MIC leader has been branded a hypocrite by the state’s Umno Youth after he criticised them for joining forces with DAP, as the rift between the two Barisan Nasional (BN) components widened.
Kedah MIC chairman SK Suresh was reported to have said that Umno was in no position to talk about loyalty as it was now collaborating with DAP.
Suresh also said that Umno was willing to throw the past away after joining forces with its once bitter rivals.
He had said this in response to Kedah BN information chief Shaiful Hazizy Zainol Abidin who had yesterday remarked that the coalition would not beg for the support of those who had turned their backs on them.
Shaiful also said that loyalty “is not something to be toyed with, traded during elections and reclaimed in times of difficulty.”
His comments came in the wake of a motion passed by Kedah MIC to work with Perikatan Nasional (PN) in the next general election (GE16).
In a statement yesterday, Kedah Umno Youth chief Raqib Abu Hassan said Suresh was being a hypocrite, while the latter’s response to Shaiful was “shallow”.
“Taking a swipe at Kedah Umno for ‘cosying up’ with DAP is trite.
“The reality is that it is MIC that has lost its allies and influence in Kedah, not Umno.”
Raqib also said that Kedah MIC should stop playing “hero”, adding that Kedah BN would not be cowed by such threats.
He also went on to wish Kedah MIC all the best and sarcastically suggested that the Indian-based party no longer needed to be part of a coalition that once came to its rescue.
The motion by Kedah MIC was raised at the party’s state annual general meeting yesterday, which was also attended by its president SA Vigneswaran.
Suresh, however, said that the motion would be brought to the central leadership for a final decision.
The motion comes a week after Vigneswaran said MIC was prepared to engage in discussions with any political party to ensure its survival and better serve the Indian community.
MIC’s future has been under scrutiny after deputy president M Saravanan said the party’s direction would be decided at its annual general meeting in October.
In an interview with Utusan Malaysia last month, Saravanan said MIC felt like an “unwanted guest” in the unity government with no posts in the government despite having senior political figures like himself as party leaders.
