I HAVE come across media reports about Jelutong MP RSN Rayer questioning the United Rights of Malaysian Party (Urimai) interim council chairman Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy on why the latter did not push the Federal government on construction of the Sungai Bakap Tamil School when he was Penang’s deputy chief minister II (DCM II).

I am not surprised at Rayer’s ignorance on the matter. He was too busy ‘following’ DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng wherever there former goes to truly know the issue behind the Sungai Bakap Tamil School.

The issue of the Sungai Bakap Tamil School which is currently sitting on a half-acre kongsi land started some 15 years back when the owner of the land told the school to vacate the land.

This was when people of South Seberang Perai demanded the Federal government to act on that matter. It was Ramasamy who stood up for the school all that time. Where was this so- called ‘community champion’ Rayer then?

Subsequently, the Najib’s administration had approved a federal ‘education’ land to the school. With the guidance of the then deputy education minister P. Kamalanathan, a board of governor was formed for the school.

The Najib’s administration also approved a funding of RM3.5 mil directly to the school’s board.

The school’s board then acquired all the necessary approval from the local authorities to build the school from 2017 till 2020 while construction works commenced in 2021 and was supposed to complete in April 2024.

However, this came to a halt when construction costs ballooned and the school’s board was unable to raise the money. Ramasamy had written to the few education ministers numerous times advising them to allocate more funds to the school.

Where was Rayer?

In fact, when campaigning for Fadhlina Sidek as the Nibong Tebal parliamentary candidate in the 2022 national polls, Ramasamy and I had addressed the Sungai Bakap Tamil School by assuring Indian voters that she would take up the issue, when she became their MP.

But after Fadhlina Sidek was elected as MP and later appointed as the Education Minister, the District Education Department had on last year issued a letter to the school, instructing it “to disperse” the pupils to nearby Tamil schools.

Questions then arose whether the Education Ministry is trying to close down the school instead of completing the school building.

Ramasamy who was then the Penang DCM II was the first one to question the Education Ministry. He told the ministry to state openly if it was unwilling to build the school for if the Anwar’s administration is unwilling to fulfil the promise, the people themselves would take up the job.

Where was Rayer on that day? This news was widely covered by the media. Rayer wouldn’t had time to read all those news as he is only interested in the news about his towkays obviously.

I recall staging a media conference on that day where I called on the Education Ministry to stop their underhand tactics despite prior to that, the then State Education Department director had contacted me to call off my planned media conference and let him handle the matter.

I had in fact put on record to the media the Penang Tamil School Committee’s strongest protest to the State Education Department’s insensitive notice.

Where was Rayer then? This loudmouth DAP lawmaker has been a MP since 2018. Did he ever raise the issue of SJKT Sungai Bakap in the Dewan Rakyat?

His job in the Parliament is seemingly to cause ruckus or defend bosses in his party. Rayer has no right to question Ramasamy as he had never spoke about this issue or raise any Penang Tamil school issue for the matter in the Parliament.

In fact, he did not even know about the development of Tamil schools in Penang nor had he referred to me in the past.

Obviously, this loudmouth MP could have been instructed by his towkays to attack Ramasamy and Urimai. My advice to Rayer is to do your job as MP first by checking your facts before shooting your mouth. - July 4, 2024

Satees Muniandy is the United Rights of Malaysian Party’s (Urimai) interim secretary-general.

The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.

https://focusmalaysia.my/in-defence-of-ramasamy-from-rsn-rayers-attack-over-sg-bakap-tamil-school/