PM Najib wants winnable candidates from MIC

Najib, who is also Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman, said these were the prerequisites given to MIC for wanting to contest in all the seats it had contested previously.

He said this was because, in reality, none of the constituencies had the Indians as majority voters.

"I want MIC to provide winnable and credible voters. The candidates must be accepted by all the races. If MIC wants to win, it also has to rely on the support of other races. Please give me good and credible leaders.

"In certain places, for example, Teluk Kemang parliamentary constituency, the voters not only comprise party members, but also soldiers. So, MIC has to be accepted by all races and not only the Indian community," he said in his speech when opening 71st MIC General Assembly at the Putra World Trade Centre here.

On the presence of 4,000 MIC members, including 1,500 delegates for the assembly, Najib said it showed that the party was strong, receiving a standing ovation and applause from the audience.

"MIC is in the process of reform, following the move started by UMNO, where the MIC president will be selected by the 42,000 delegates and not 4,000 branch heads like before," he said.

On fire at the Darul Quran Ittifaqiyah Tahfiz Centre in which 23 people, including two teachers, perished last Sept 14, Najib praised the concern showed by Dr S. Subramaniam and his party towards the incident.

"The speech by MIC president shows that the party is always concerned and care about other races and this attitude must be passed down to all levels, not just by the presidential, but also the division.

"MIC must prioritise the Indian community, but by not neglecting other communities because this is the political reality of a nation which has achieved many successes domestically and on the world stage," said Najib.

"I have good ties with India, China, Saudi Arabia and the United States. I want Malaysia to always be progressive, peaceful and successful and the pride of the people, " he added.

The Prime Minister also took the opportunity to congratulate former MIC president Tun S. Samy Vellu at being conferred the Seri Setia Mahkota, the nation's highest award, which carries the title of 'Tun', recently.

"Actually, I recommended to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Muhammad V because I want to bring back the past alliance of Tun Tan Cheng Lock (former MCA president) and Tun V.T. Sambanthan (former MIC president). Now, we have Tun Samy. At least, now we have Tun Samy representing the Indian community with the Tun title," he said.