MIC's longest serving president S Samy Vellu admitted today that the Indian community does not care for MIC any longer.

"I must congratulate him (G Palanivel). All this while, no one could destroy the MIC, but he took over and destroyed it," Samy told Malaysiakini .

"He has killed a party that worked for the Indian community, killed a party that represented the Indians, killed a party that has brought forward a lot of things for the Indians," he added.

Samy  also lamented that Palanivel had learned nothing from him.

"Palanivel was my former press secretary. I trained him, (but) he didn’t learn anything, " he said.

Speaking on the sidelines of a forum on the Indian community in Kuala Lumpur today, Samy claimed that the Indian community does not care for MIC any longer.

"MIC has lost its strength. Gone are the days when the whole Indian community would look forward to the MIC," he said.

Samy also voiced his support for MIC deputy president Dr S Subramaniam ( right ), who is widely seen as the man to replace Palanivel.

"Subramaniam is 100 times better than Palanivel. He understands the (Indian) people, he understands their pain, and he has got plans on how (to improve their lot)," he said.

Meanwhile, later during the forum titled 'The 11th Malaysian Plan and the Indian Community', the former minister lamented how highrise flats built for Indian squatters have become ghettos.

"From wooden houses, they were moved to brick flats, but the public space for better quality of life was not provided.

"These flats have become urban ghettos, a breeding ground for crime, violence, dysfunctional families, social isolation and social exclusion," Samy said in his speech.

As such, he hopes that this issue, and others related to poverty for the bottom 40 percent of all communities, can be addressed in the 11th Malaysia Plan.

Minister in the Prme Minister's Department Abdul Wahid Omar in his speech, said the government would lay out a plan for the people's economy, which would create more jobs and provide better access to education and healthcare.