People
Dr. Susheel Kaur: New President of Parti Punjabi Malaysia
by JASPAL SINGH
Dr Susheel Kaur, 59, yesterday, became the first woman president of the 24-year-old Parti Punjabi Malaysia (PPM).
The senior consultant who majored in social impact studies was elected unopposed by more than 50 delegates at the party's biennial general meeting here.
Speaking to the New Straits Times, Susheel admitted that she was not cut out to be a politician but stressed that she felt responsible for the party which was founded in 1986 by her father, Jeswant Singh.
She took over the reins from her cousin, Datuk Dr Gurdeep Perkash Singh, who had helmed the party for the last six years. She had served as the party's secretary for 10 years.
With a Ph.D in population geography from Punjab University, Chandigarh, Punjab, she believed that her academic qualification and working experience would assist her in formulating a new direction for the party.
She, however, acknowledged sentiments within the Punjabi community which saw the party as a weakling compared with other political groups.
"One of the reasons why the party has not been able to leap forward and become the de-facto voice of the Punjabis in this country is because of its repeated failures to gain admission into Barisan Nasional.
"We have been trying to do this for over 10 years now. Not fewer than six applications were submitted but all went unanswered. In fact, our latest application was made on Feb 2, 2010. We are still waiting for an answer."
She added that it was an open secret that an Indian-based party within the BN coalition had opposed PPM joining the ruling coalition.
Asked if PPM, under her presidency, would continue to lobby to get into BN, Susheel said many in the party were feeling that they were already at the edge of their patience, with some believing that BN would never admit the party into its fold.
"The admissibility issue is a thorny one. If things do not move in a positive direction, PPM would have to consider other options," she said, alluding to the possibility of the party joining Parti Keadilan Rakyat.
She said the party also needed to work harder to get more Sikhs and Punjabis to be members, stressing that the party hardly represented five per cent of the 130,000-strong community in the country.
With about 3,000 members now, Susheel said it would be difficult for the party to engineer socio-economic policies for the community unless it went all out to form partnerships or networking with the various Sikh and Punjabi non-governmental organisations in the country.
The single, soft-spoken president believes that PPM could not afford to be seen or treated as a weak political organisation.
"I feel great to have been elected as PPM's first woman president and I promise I'll give my best to raise the profile of the only Punjabi political party in this country," she said.
Dr. Susheel Kaur has a Ph.D, in Population Geography and professional experience of over 20 years in planning works with local, state and federal planning authorities and in socio-economic projects with private organizations and NGOs. Currently, her interest is in public participation and Impact Assessments studies. Her previous experience has been in conducting ethnical studies, family planning as well as sexual and reproductive issues in Thailand, Philippines, India and Vietnam and social aspect of forestry in Indonesia and East Malaysia. She takes keen interest in community-related issues and is an active member of the Residents' Associations in her area and other NGOs .( Malaysian Consultative Council for Sikhs, Christians, Hindus and Buddhists; Amnesty International, Transparency International.
[Courtesy: New Straits Times]
May 16, 2010