I read with great concern the statements made by G Palanivel regarding MIC's future foray into commercial activities in the Bernama article dated 19/10/2011.

Suddenly, premonitions of the Maika debacle came to mind. The government bailout of it, and subsequent cover-up of the Telekom shares speak volumes of how this new initiative is also doomed to fail.

On the same note, how does he propose Indians vie for government contracts when they are unable to attain licenses which are solely the privilege of bumiputra contractors?

Why is MIC not addressing the unfair policies which perpetuate the disempowerment of Indian contractors?

So the government doles out some paltry pittance to boost the image of the Palanivel camp so that he in turn will dole out these pathetic morsels to needy folk with an equal amount of political rhetoric.

So, RM100 million is being allocated for Indian women entrepreneurs via Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia. I guess MIC really has done its homework considering the participation of Indian women in business/corporate sector which is abysmal at best.

What they need are temporary special measures to enable them to succeed in business akin to the new economic policy.

In addition to this, it is not stated why micro-credit or small loans is considered the best method to uplift these women.

He pegs poverty among Indians at about 30 percent, is this the statistics from EPU? If the government has been aware of the severity of the problem, why was this not addressed earlier in any of the Malaysian Plans?

To quote Palanivel, ‘They look impoverished" is not a valid analysis befitting a politician who proclaims lofty aims of delivering the community from marginalisation. It is a cursory remark by a privileged individual who is ignorant and apathetic to the community's plight.

Last but not least, the proposal to set-up 200,000 hectares of Indian owned plantations is eerily similar to Maika's past record which eventually ended in the fragmentation of these estates in areas such as Tumbuk Estate , Kuala Langat.

To date, there is a community of 30 ex-plantation workers who are still waiting for the houses and gratuity compensation promised by Maika which never materialised, thanks to Maika's failure to protect the best interests of its employees.

It is evident there exists a grand agenda within MIC's clueless top brass that they have the magic bullet for the problems facing the community, however they have failed to perceive the gravity of the issues affecting Malaysian Indians.

Begging for pittance from a racist, supremacist and social unjust government will not be the solution, I am afraid.