COMMENT | This is my response to Charles Santiago's statement, where he alleged that I'm jumping over the issue of statelessness of the Indian community in Malaysia.

My advice is Charles should not jump the gun in issuing unnecessary statements as it was a deputy minister from the Pakatan Harapan government who provided the numbers.

Anyhow, it is a collective responsibility of all Indian leaders to solve issues of statelessness amongst the Indian community.

Even now as opposition, we are willing to join hands in solving the issue, in the interest of the community.

You are the government now, Charles, so please stop behaving like the opposition. The power is in your hands now so it gives you no reason not to act and take the necessary steps to solve this issue. Arguing about numbers and criticising others is not going to bring about solutions.

Charles must first acknowledge that all efforts that are being currently undertaken by the Harapan government in solving issues of statelessness are a borrowed effort of the Barisan Nasional government.

Let me educate you with some statistics, Charles.

Under the Mydaftar programme from 2010 to 2016, a total of 12,726 applications were recorded amongst the Indian community involving citizenship, late registration of birth certificate and issuance of MyKad. From that total, 7,126  were approved with 626 rejected while 4,974 were being reviewed.

Thereafter, the then prime minister Najib Razak and then MIC president and health minister Dr S Subramaniam, under the Mega Mydaftar campaign, approved a further 1,638 applications.

More than 3,000 applications which were in consideration at that stage were supposed to be processed and approved after the 14th General Elections. Unfortunately, Barisan Nasional did not form the government.

So, I reiterate that whatever effort that is being taken now by the Harapan government is a borrowed effort from Barisan.

We in the past, had on numerous occasions invited the then opposition leaders, be it from PKR or DAP, to join hands and cooperate in solving documentation issues of the Indians. Not a single person from either party lifted a finger at that point in time.

So, please save the trouble of criticising me or the MIC in regards to this issue, Charles.

My advice is that you spend more time learning to be government and probably educate your compatriot, the deputy home minister to issue appropriate statements and answers in Parliament.

I would like to throw a challenge to Charles and the rest of the Indian ministers and leaders of the Harapan government to bring forward not 300,000 but at least 10% of the figure which is 30,000 and grant them citizenships.

Prove that you are not only right about the figure but your willingness to solve this issue for the Indian community.

T MOHAN is a Barisan senator and MIC vice-president.

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