WHILE politicians continue trading blows, the reality is this: the plight of the Indian community remains not a national priority.
What should be a serious, sustained effort to address structural inequality has instead become a game of tit-for-tat rhetoric, where scoring points takes precedence over delivering real, tangible change.
The community watches on, again relegated to the sidelines of political relevance, their struggles reduced to talking points rather than solutions.
The anger, frustration, and criticism directed at the government, and specifically at those in positions of influence, are not without merit. It is a national shame that, nearly seven decades after independence, we are still talking about “empowering” Indians as though it were a novel ambition.
That this community still struggles for equitable access to education, employment, and political representation, which is not just a policy failure but a reflection of decades of political neglect across all ruling coalitions.
But this cannot become another episode in the blame game. This is not the time to grandstand. If every party continues to speak over one another and weaponise the community’s pain for clout, the cycle will only repeat itself, leaving behind yet another generation of Malaysian Indians alienated from national development.
The question should not be what a single person has done in two years but why for over sixty years no coalition or party, and that includes the MIC, has managed to build enduring, community-led platforms for progress.
To her credit, Nurul Izzah Anwar has worked alongside stakeholders from Yayasan Iltizam Malaysia, Sustainable Initiative for Community Change (SICC), and a group of independent advocates to formulate a set of recommendations focused on equity and structural change. And this has been presented to be included in the 13th Malaysia Plan.
It was done through engagements with educators, social workers, business and community leaders including women and youth. This may not be enough but it is a starting point. The work is ongoing.
The exercise involved 200 people and resulted in 40 over proposals to empower the community. The recommendations have been submitted to the Economic Ministry.
This was a community driven approach.
So instead of chasing quick wins or political points, let’s focus on how we can collaborate meaningfully for lasting change as the Indian community deserves more than outrage and posturing.
It deserves a unified front and a coming together of policymakers, civil society, business leaders, and community actors to lay out clear, measurable goals.
Enough with the political disengagement and performative concern. Let’s stop rewarding those who throw the loudest brickbats and start amplifying those doing the slow, difficult work of transformation.
This isn’t a call to silence criticism. It’s a call to redirect it meaningfully. If the goal is real change, then we must build platforms together, not pull them apart. — July 7, 2025
Human rights advocate and economist Charles Santiago is a three term DAP assemblyman