Ramasamy: MIC’s hesitation to jump ship to PN reflects political caution, not courage

Ramasamy: MIC’s hesitation to jump ship to PN reflects political caution, not courage

By Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy
12 hours ago






IS it a surprise that the MIC finally decided to stay put in the Barisan Nacional (BN) coalition rather than take the risk of seeking sanctuary in the greener pastures of the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition?


For weeks, there had been speculation that the MIC, having been given a cold shoulder by UMNO, had decided to join the opposition coalition.



PN partners, particularly PAS, were thrilled by the prospect that MIC – one of the founding partners of BN – might decide to jump ship.

PN was thrilled not because Indian voters would automatically desert the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition to come along with the MIC but rather to achieve a symbolic victory of breaking up BN by bringing the MIC within its fold.




MIC might have once been a strong representative of the Indian community but that scenario no longer exists. The party has been largely abandoned by the Indian community over the last two decades or so.


‘More to lose than to gain’

However, as a party closely identified with the Indian community, MIC still carries symbolic political value.

It was for this reason that PN was eager to bring the MIC into its political fold. Unfortunately, the PN leadership misjudged the political opportunism of the MIC.

While the MIC wanted to punish UMNO leaders for their perceived arrogance, its own leadership lacked the resolve to make a final decision.

This explains why, despite the green light given by PN for the party to join its fold, the MIC leadership was unwilling to take the decisive step.

There was a realisation among MIC leaders that they had more to lose than to gain by joining PN. As a result, the party adopted a position of ambivalence rather than making a firm political commitment.



The growing gap between the MIC leadership and its rank and file contributed to the party’s inability to chart a political course that could benefit Indians in the country.

Fear of backlash from the Madani government, the leadership’s preoccupation with managing party assets and its detachment from addressing the socio-economic concerns of the Indian community all prevented it from making a decisive move regardless of the outcome.

In essence, the Indian community expected some degree of boldness from the MIC leadership, not necessarily because joining PN would open new opportunities but because leadership requires conviction.

It is unfortunate that even this minimal expectation was not met and that MIC ultimately failed this political test. – March 26, 2026



Former DAP stalwart and Penang deputy chief minister II Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is chairman of the United Rights of Malaysian Party (Urimai) interim council.

***

MIC and MCA as well as Gerakan were all "destroyed" by UMNO, specially UMNO's "arrogance", bullying and humiliation of the 3 'non' parties (I consider Gerakan a non-party)