It is with great sadness that I write this tribute to Mrs Ganga Nair who passed away 3rd April 2009 at the age of 85.
40 years ago, in the 3rd General Elections on May 10th 1969 at the age of 45, Mrs Nair was the first Indian woman in Malaysia to be elected to legislative office when she won the Selangor state assembly seat of Serendah on a Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia (GERAKAN) ticket defeating a strong MCA candidate, Lim Tze Hou. After the elections, with the Alliance (UMNO, MCA & MIC) and combined opposition (DAP and GERAKAN and an independent) each holding 14 seats, she was one of two GERAKAN state reps offered positions in Dato Harun Idris’ Alliance government but she declined the offer while her GERAKAN colleague and the independent assemblyman switched camp enabling Dato Harun to form the Selangor state government.
She was dedicated to social justice and an equal Malaysian nation all her life. When GERAKAN joined Barisan Nasional in 1974, she quit the party and followed Dr Tan Chee Khoon and other GERAKAN leaders to form Parti Keadilan Masyarakat (PEKEMAS) – the Social Justice Party. In her later years, with the demise of PEKEMAS, she stood with the DAP although she did not repeat her 1969 electoral feat.
May her family be comforted that Mrs Ganga Nair fought the good fight and will always be remembered as a trail blazer. May God bless her soul.
Contributed by Richard Y W Yeoh
We should salute and always remember the dedication, sacrifices and steadfast commitment of the late Mrs Ganga Nair’s fight and stand for social justice and fairplay for all in Malaysia irrespective of race, colour or creed.
To the family of Mrs Ganga Nair, I would like to convey my sincere condolences to them. Her spirit will forever live on in our hearts!