Most Malaysian Indians would like to congratulate S Samy Velu for being returned president of MIC for the 10th term. This is a feat, I m sure, no other MIC leader can ever achieve. This resounding victory carries with it a heavy responsibility of leading the Indian community out of the present dilemma they are in.

I was very impressed by his statement, 'I have been elected as a servant to serve you. I want to finish this journey and for me to do that, the Indian community needs a quantum leap economically and socially. I won't give up on this as long as I remain president'.

The MIC, being the only Indian party in the government, has an added responsibility in crafting the destiny of the community. It should not rest on past laurels but wake up to face the new realities of the challenges in a fast moving nation and world.

The two main problems that plague the Indian community are unemployment and high crime rate. Both are inter-related and the latter is going to keep increasing if job opportunities do not improve. The MIC, with the help of the government, must urgently address this issue.

The mindset of the community must change from one of reliance on government handouts to one of aggressive pursuit of available opportunities. In this struggle, the community must equip itself to compete in today's world where only the fittest survive.

Science, technology and commerce are developing at a rate that is difficult to cope with unless we are well-equipped. Mastering English is a must if we want to put up a tangible challenge in the fight for opportunities in these fields. I am afraid that we are losing our grip on English and if we continue to shy away from mastering it, we may be left behind.

We must realise that nobody can help us achieve our economic and social targets if we ourselves do nothing about it. We have to do it by ourselves and ourselves alone.