Pakatan Rakyat has a new face in the Dewan Negara, with S Ramakrishnan being sworn in today - he is also the opposition coalition’s first Indian Malaysian nominee.

NONE After the ceremony, Ramakrishnan - a former Petaling Jaya councillor - said he is looking forward to bringing change to the Upper House.

In addition, he will give priority to issues concerning racial unity and equality for all the people, equal economic opportunities and making the civil service more inclusive of all races.

“I will also bring up the provision for vernacular education, as guaranteed by the constitution. The provision is not a privilege, but a birth right of Malaysians,” he told reporters.

Ramakrishnan, 53, is one of two senators appointed by the Selangor legislative assembly t to replace Ikhwan Salim Sujak and Yip Kum Fook, who represented the state and whose term of office ended on Dec 6.

Tomorrow, PKR deputy president Syed Husin Ali , 73, will be sworn in.

a kugan detention death funeral ummc to puchong 280109 m manogaran Teluk Intan DAP parliamentarian M Manogaran said this is an “historic day” for the party in that Ramakrishnan is the first Indian Malaysian senator selected by Pakatan.

“We have been hearing for some time from people outside, even from Hindraf, that Pakatan in general is not doing enough for Indians. But this is an example of how the party caters for all races,” he added.

DAP had earlier been accused of sidelining veteran grassroots leader T Kannan for the post.

For DAP senior leader Lim Kit Siang, Ramakrishnan’s appointment has come “at a most important time” to restore the senate’s credibility which “has eroded over the decade”.

He said this is because senate president Wong Foong Meng, who is also MCA secretary-general, is embroiled in the ongoing party turmoil.

Lim had earlier objected to Wong’s appointment because, as senate president, he should be above the crisis in the MCA and be able to avoid a conflict of interest.

Striving for relevance

DAP senator Tunku Abdul Aziz lauded Ramakrishnan’s appointment, saying that having another DAP senator would make a big difference in the senate.

tunku abdul aziz tunku ibrahim “The purpose of our being in the senate is to make it more relevant. It is sad that the senate has been criticised to such an extent that the members are more concerned about their party positions rather than the law,” he said.

He suggested that the senators should be less concerned with political issues and instead focus on “the quality of legislation”.

m kulasegaran Another DAP leader, M Kulasegaran, hoped that Ramakrishnan will work towards reform of the senate, including pushing for direct elections.

This was a provision in the federal constitution when it was framed, but has not been realised to date.

“We want elections because we want to have a fair voice in the senate,” said the Ipoh Barat MP.