– Jiwi Kathaiah, April 15, 2012.

The Selangor State government has done what it is not obliged to do. It has built a modern Tamil School using its own resources. Another RM1.9 million is needed to settle the bill. It is expected that the people concerned, the parents and other interested Indians, will find a way to raise the money. Why should they do it?

Education is the responsibility of the Federal government. The Federal Constitution makes it abundantly clear that the funding for the Tamil and the Mandarin schools comes from the Federal government. The entire funding for the National school comes from the government. Why should it be different and that in violation of the Constitution when it comes to Tamil and Mandarin schools?

In the year of independence, the national income was $181 million. Of which 68 per cent was from the plantations, 30 per cent from the mining industry and 2 per cent from others. The 68 per cent of the national income was from the labour of the Indians.

Labour producing national wealth? No cynical smiles! Yes. Labour produces national wealth. 225 years ago, Adam Smith pronounced that it is not the King, not the Ministers and not the Generals and Admirals who produced the wealth. It is the Labour that produced the wealth. Yes, Malaya’s wealth, the national wealth, was produced by the Indian labour.

What happened to the Indians who produced 68 per cent of the national wealth in 1957?

The Indians have since been successfully turned into an under-class and marginalised people. Who said it?

MIC stated in an internal document in the early years of this century in a rather subdued tone:

“Presently, Indians have neither the political nor the economic leverage to break out of their vicious circle of poverty, and they also lack the necessary human resources, which in turn feed each other. They also have no financial, commercial or industrialised structure, besides lacking the necessary managerial and entrepreneurial skills. Further, their ownership of the share capital of limited companies has not shown much improvement over the last two decades. In fact, if their problems are not arrested and reversed in a timely and proper manner, then, in all likelihood, it is almost certain that Malaysian Indians will emerge as an underclass in Malaysia.”

The latest declaration, made on 23 December 2010, that the Indians are marginalised was made by the MIC President himself. He said:

“…we are a marginalised community…there is no doubt about it.”

Who did all these to the Indians? It was certainly not done by the Japanese or the British. The Indians were turned into an under-class and marginalised by the UMNO, MCA and MIC who have been ruling this country for the last 55 years. During their rule they also pursued and still pursue the “ultimate objective” of destroying the Tamil and Mandarin schools.

The Indian victims of the UMNO, MCA and MIC government are now expected to foot the bill for the Midlands Tamil School!

The Indians should make Putrajaya to pay for it. The Prime Minister has been going to the Indians these days to ensure his survival. Likewise, the Indians should march to Putrajaya to collect the money for the Midlands Tamil School.

Our sisters and brothers who are the parents of the children attending the Midland Tamil School should march to Putrajaya demanding their rights as our forefathers, 400 men, women and children, did in 1912 marching from Sungai Tinggi Estate, Batang Berjuntai, to Klang.

Remember, the Prime Minister and his Deputy are said to have dished out in 11 weeks  more than RM600 million of the people’s money to buy their continued survival.

Now, how about the chicken feed, RM1.9 million?