Merdeka memory lane: Tun V.T. Sambanthan
KUALA LUMPUR: Every Aug 31, the memory of Tun V. T. Sambanthan is kept alive for his role in the fight for Malaysia's independence and uniting the plural society of the country.
In the countdown to National Day celebrations on Thursday, the late iconic leader of the Indian community is well-remembered by many, including the residents of Kampung Tun Sambanthan in Ayer Tawar, Perak.
The 45-year-old village located 14km from Sitiawan, has a unique historical value, having been named after the independence figure whose initials stood for Veerasamy Thirunyanasambanthan.
Sambanthan was the fifth MIC president.
Today, more than 700 people reside in Kampung Tun Sambanthan, with a majority of the villagers comprising the Indian community, while there is also an Indian Muslim family and two Chinese families.
Village head A. Jeganathan, 51, who was born and bred in Ayer Tawar, said four decades ago, Sambanthan distributed a portion of the land lots of the Ulu Ayer Tawar Estate, a rubber plantation, through the shares of the National Land Finance Cooperative Society (NLFCS) to the local residents.
"From the more than 242.8 hectares of estate land, 26.3 hectares was purchased and divided into 220 lots measuring a quarter acre each which were distributed to help the Indian community with the original purpose of improving their standard of living through plantation activities," he told Bernama recently.
However, Jeganathan said, when the housing scheme was introduced, most of them chose to build houses on the land provided, while carrying out agricultural activities.
Sharing his experience, B. Kaneapa, 66, a farmer from Kampung Kinta Valley in Batu Gajah, Perak, praised Sambanthan for his vast contributions to the Indian community.
"I still remember that when I was 13, Tun Sambanthan visited Batu Gajah and in a special assembly then, he promised to buy and share the land from an English-owned estate with the residents there via NLFCS shares.
"He kept his word … a total of 29.1 hectares of the estate was distributed and owned by those of the same age generation as my parents then. Some of them built houses while others cultivated oil palm trees as a source of living," said Kaneapa, who resides in Batu Gajah with his family.
Sambanthan died on May, 1979, due to heart disease. His death was a great loss to the country, and specifically, the Indian community. — Bernama