S. Samy Vellu
|
Yang Berbahagia Dato' Seri S. Samy Vellu RIBA |
|
|---|---|
| 7th President of Malaysian Indian Congress | |
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In office 12 October 1979 – 6 December 2010 |
|
| Deputy |
Subramaniam Sinniah (1979-2006) G. Palanivel (2006-2010) |
| Preceded by | V. Manickavasagam |
| Succeeded by | G. Palanivel |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
8 March 1936 Kluang, Johor, British Malaya (now Malaysia) |
| Political party | Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) part of Barisan Nasional |
| Spouse(s) | Indrani Samy Vellu |
Dato' Seri Samy Vellu Sangalimuthu RIBA (born 8 March 1936) is a Malaysian Indian politician. He was the longest-serving President of the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), a component party of the Barisan Nasional coalition, holding the position from 1979 to 2010, for 11 consecutive terms. Beginning in 1979, he held a succession of ministerial portfolios in the Cabinet of Malaysia, including two long stints as Minister of Works, until he lost his parliamentary seat in the 2008 general election; by that time he was the longest-serving minister in the Cabinet. He subsequently announced his intended retirement in December 2010, paving the way for his deputy G. Palanivel to succeed him as party leader.
Samy Vellu's political career began at the age of 23, in 1959, when he and Govindaraj joined the Batu Caves MIC branch. After five years, he was elected Selangor MIC committee member and the head of the party. He made headlines news by climbing up the Indonesian embassy's flag pole, pulling down the flag and burning it. He was charged in court and fined RM2. He was called Hero Malaysia on the front pages.
From 1974 to March 2008 he was a member of the House of Representatives of the Malaysian Parliament and from 1979 to December 2010 he was President of Malaysian Indian Congress and a partner in the ruling National Front Coalition. During this time, from 1978 to 1979 he was Deputy Minister of Local Government and Housing. Then from 1979 to 1989 he was Minister of Works. He then served as Minister of Energy, Telecommunications and Posts from 1989 to 1995. From 1995 to March 2008 he was the Minister of Works until he lost his parliamentary seat to Michael Jeyakumar in the March 2008 general election.
He was the second longest serving minister in the country, after Rafidah Aziz.
He has served as Malaysia's Special Envoy of Infrastructure to India and Southern Asia, with ministerial rank, since 1 January 2011.
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