200 Indians denied Tekun Micro business loans only (13) 6.5% get peanuts of RM2K to RM3K- Kacang putih business? The 2010 National budget is RM191.5 Billion.
RM200 Million was allocated to Tabung Kumpulan Usaha Niaga (TEKUN). This includes RM20 Million for small scale Indian Malaysian entrepreneurs which is in addition to the existing RM50 Million. But we estimate that about 95% of this RM35 Million did not go down to the Indian entrepreneurs on the ground, just like how the RM100 Million allocation for Tamil schools under the first and second economic stimulus packages (2009 Budget) but not a single cent went to any Tamil school. (NST 24/10/2009 at page B4).
But when it comes to granting these Tekun business loans even up to 100% of the Indian applicants have been denied the same. RM2.5 Billion AIM loans were given to 190,900 poor households earning below RM2,000 per month. But the Malaysian Indian Business Association President, Mr.P.Sivakumar was reported to have said in 2008 that the government’s AIM loans did not provide micro credit loans to all the 200 Indians it had recommended.
Out of the 200 applicants for this Tekun loans, only 13 were granted RM2,000.00 to RM3000.00 loans. What! to do Kacang Putih business? And only one Indian was granted RM10,000.00 (SH 30/4/10 at page S21).
The Indians do not want any special allocation of RM35 Million or so, as the UMNO led Malay-sian government’s racist game plan is that an estimated 95% or so of these allocations do not reach the targeted 70% of the Indians who are poor and in the lower income group anyway! This UMNO’s game plan is just the tip of the iceberg and it applies to all other areas of the national mainstream development of Malaysia which excludes the Indians.
The Indians want to be part of the RM200 Million Tekun loans which should be on a needs basis in accordance with Article 8 of the Federal Constitution which guarantees equality for all Malaysian citizens before the law but which the racist, religious extremist and supremacist UMNO does not follow. In fact UMNO violates this Article 8 with impunity.
And on top of this we want the UMNO One Malay-sia Prime Minister to publish, in a transparent, accountable manner and with good governance, in the Prime Minister’s website the full list of recipients, the amount of loans they had received and the criteria of selection.
Then and only then will there be One Malaysia as opposed to One Malay-sia.
P.Uthayakumar
