MEDIA STATEMENT ON THE 2nd NATIONAL SYMPOSIUM 2015 ON 31 MAY 2015

BY Y.BHG DATO’ SERI UTAMA S.SAMY VELLU, CHAIRMAN OF YAYASAN PEMULIHAN SOSIAL (YPS)  

"REVIEWING THE ELEVENTH MALAYSIA PLAN (2016-2020): TAPPING THE OPPORTUNITIES & PLUGGING INTO THE PROVISIONS” 

AT THE PUTRA WORLD TRADE CENTRE KUALA LUMPUR 



After a successful National Symposium on the Malaysian Indians and the Eleventh Malaysia Plan (11MP) which was held on 16 May 2015, we will be hosting the Second National Symposium 2015 entitle “REVIEWING THE ELEVENTH MALAYSIA PLAN (2016-2020): TAPPING THE OPPORTUNITIES & PLUGGING INTO THE PROVISIONS” on 31 May 2015 at 9.30 am at the Putra World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur.  

The second symposium comes almost a week after YAB Dato’ Sri Najib Tun Abdul Razak, the Prime Minister of Malaysia had tabled the Eleventh Malaysia Plan in Parliament.

The second symposium will discuss and deliberate the five year development plan and note its relevance and benefit for the Malaysian Indian community. Yayasan Pemulihan Sosial (YPS) had hosted the first National Symposium on 16 April 2015 where about 100 people from various voluntary organisations and academic institutions participated.  The result of the first symposium produced the findings of the discussions in a book entitled “Ensuring Inclusive & Equitable Development” edited by Datuk Dr Denison Jayasooria of UKM. In addition we had also prepared a special report entitled “Transformational Agenda for Community Reliance and Cohesion” listing out our “Ten key Indian community concerns and recommendations” as well as proposed “Five Strategic Thrust Areas”.

I am happy to say that both the reports was presented to YB Dato’ Seri Abdul Wahid Omar, the Minister in the PMs’ Department who is in charge of the Economic Planning Unit. I will also be submitting the two reports to YAB Prime Minister personally soon so that immediate action is given and taken on the recommendations made. We want the recommendations to be implemented where possible under the Eleventh Malaysia Plan.

YAB Dato’ Sri Najib Tun Abdul Razak in his speech in Parliament said that a special blueprint will be prepared in addressing the Indian community concerns. YPS welcomes the announcement and the opportunity provided by the Government. We will ensure that our findings in both the first and second National Symposium will be incorporated into the blueprint drafting by the Prime Minister’s Office.

Our YAB Prime Minister has during the Tenth Malaysia Plan period established four special units with full time staff employed by the Federal Government. The Prime Minister has already recognised 8 critical issues and concerns. This is work in process. The Cabinet Committee on Indian Concerns is directly chaired by the Prime Minister. All these are major efforts by the Federal Government. We were told by the Prime Minister’s Office that it will be the Cabinet Committee that will be responsible for the formulation of the blueprint and more announcements will be made. We were also told that the blueprint effort is to strengthen the work already being done so as to ensure that the delivery and implementation are more effective and the outreach is enlarged.

We must remember that the Malaysian Indian concerns are no longer just community concerns, these are national concerns as the main thrust of our Prime Minister’s agenda is “inclusive development”. This means that all communities must be part of mainstream development process.

The second symposium will deliberate on how we can make sure that over the next five years we can tap and plug into the system. How do we strengthen advocacy? How do we undertake policy dialogue and negotiation for a better deal? How do we monitor and document the experiences both success and challenges?

We must set up our own information and dissemination system, we must ensure that the bottom 40% can plug into the system and be able to benefit from the many initiatives of the Federal Government.

We must set up a “hand holding process” of working together with the urban poor, displaced plantation workers and low income families living in the flats so that they too can experience social mobility and wellbeing.

We must enlarge the outreach to reach the estimated 695,030 Malaysian Indians who are at the bottom 40% or B40. It is estimated that this is about 139,010 families living in 38 districts in 9 states. All these families are being defined as families earning less that RM 2,537 a month.

We know that about 80% of Malaysian Indian are now living in the urban areas. The bottom 40%, the urban poor and displaced plantation workers are living in high rise low cost flats, low cost houses, squatters, long houses and in unresolved former plantation land.

We must reach each one of them.

 I

Issued by

Yayasan Pemulihan Sosial

KUALA LUMPUR

27 May 2015