PKR no pushover in Sarawak

Mohd Ariff Sabri Aziz | December 6, 2011

The April 16 Sarawak election proved that despite Umno maligning Anwar Ibrahim, PKR still made 'inroads into Dayak ground'.

COMMENT

There’s a view that PKR cannot win any parliamentary seats in Sarawak and that all embattled Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) seats will go to DAP.

Allow me to cite one observation passed to me by the Oracle of Syed Putera, who incidentally is the alter ego of former economic adviser Daim Zainuddin.

You can almost say that whatever the Oracle spews is what Daim thinks.

Recalling the April 16 Sarawak state election, the Oracle said the 100 percent victory by Taib Mahmud’s Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) wasn’t unexpected. PBB won all 35 seats it contested in the state election unlike Umno (in 2008 polls).

But the Oracle was more concerned about the victory by PKR in the Sarawak state election.

He said that Anwar Ibrahim (PKR de facto leader) with all the character assassinations carried out on a daily basis, had managed to assist Sarawak PKR chairman Baru Bian get three seats!

What do the wins represent?

Unless Umno people are sleeping or are busy shashaying in the lobby of Concorde Hotel and cockily holding fort in the coffee house, the wins tell us that the OPPOSITION CAN WIN.

PKR made inroads into Dayak grounds.

Then came the news about the sacking of one MP from the Sarawak Barisan Nasional coalition – Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party’s (SPDP) Dr Tiki Lafe from Mas Gading. SPDP has four parliamentary seats.

The sacking shows there is dissent within the SPDP and may result in election losses.

With the SUPP gone, PBB is banking on SPDP and PRS which has six seats.

Both SPDP and PRS have now 10 seats between them but a number of these will fall to PKR, predicts the Oracle.

The Oracle adds that the opposition has already 16 seats in the bag from Sarawak. And that’s just a precursor of worse things to come.

The writer is a former Umno state assemblyman and a FMT columnist.

SPDP crisis turning for the worst?

Joseph Tawie

Thursday, 11 February 2010 18:41

KUCHING – The deputy secretary general of Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP), Paul Igai, said today that the party is aware of the move by the five elected representatives and three members of its supreme council to leave the party.

“Yes, we are aware of their move, but we still want them to come back,” said Igai who is also a political secretary to the Chief Minister.

He said: “We must, instead, reconsolidate and re-energise the party. Focus must be on the strength of the party and the Barisan Nasional in view of the coming state election.

“Parking permits must never be an option. They are still needed in the party,” said Igai.

He said the party president, William Mawan, had met the Chief Minister and the chairman of the State Barisan Nasional, Abdul Taib Mahmud, to explain the party crisis.

Political observers, however, see the crisis has worsened because of the move by the five elected representatives and three of the supreme council members to quit the party.

Decision to leave SPDP

The elected representatives are Sylvester Enteri (state assemblyman for Marudi), Peter Nansian (state assemblyman for Tasik Biru), Rosey Yunus (state assemblywoman for Bekenu), Paulus Gumbang (state assemblyman for Batu Danau) and Dr. Tiki Lafe (MP for Mas Gading).

The three supreme council members are Peter Gani, George Garai and Eda Egar.

NOTE: IN FACT ALL THE ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES ABOVE ARE PBB's Party members - planted 'MOLES' to destroy SPDP in time of crisis. William Mawan is too gullible to understand PBB Politics of 'break and rule' to perpetuate Taib rule of Sarawak. Taib's political strategy is create 'unrest' in BN component party to keep him in power for perpetuity and to show to the Federal BN leaders that without him BN in Sarawak will disintegrate.

According to highly-placed sources, the group met the Sarawak Chief Minister on Wednesday to inform him of their decision to leave SPDP. They are asking to be parked with Parti Rakyat Sarawak which is headed by James Masing.

Last Thursday, they met with the Prime Minister informing him of their decision to leave the party.

The sources said that they were told by the Prime Minister not to form another party as they might not be able to join Barisan Nasional later.

Maintaining status quo

But the Prime Minister was said to have told them to consult the Chief Minister as to which party they should be parked.

The crisis precipitated last month after Mawan dropped Enteri as secretary general and replaced him with state assemblyman for Ba’Kelalan Nelson Balang Rining,

Enteri accused Mawan of not honouring his promise of maintaining status quo after listing him as one of the “President’s men” before the party went for its election last year.

A PRS leader, who refused to be identified, has welcomed the move by the group to be parked with PRS as it would not only enlarge the party’s elected representatives, but would also open the way for the merger of Dayak-based parties.

Currently, PRS has nine state assemblymen and six MPs. — Malaysian Mirror

More cases of ‘bullying’ by PBB

Tony Thien | October 28, 2008

The Sarawak Barisan Nasional (BN) is abuzz like a hornet’s nest that has been disturbed, following an accusation that Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) has been ‘bullying’ component parties.

MCPX

Another Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) division leader has come out in support of the claim - Simanggang division publicity chief Nanta Chaku cited three examples in a statement to Malaysiakini.

On Saturday, the party’s Baleh division publicity head Beginda Minda had revealed two instances of alleged bullying by PBB, led by Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud (right), as well as by Umno.

Nanta said: “To support Beginda Minda’s contention… three other examples come to mind immediately:

1. Since 1981 other component parties in the Sarawak BN have been required to send two to three names of candidates for each constituency held by them, for the PBB leadership to pick the ones to contest. In other words, the final selection is subject to PBB’s decision.

2. A certain high-ranking Iban personage in PBB who fancies himself as the paramount chief of the (community) always insists on appointing his favourites as Penghulus, Pemancha and Temenggong (even) where PBB does not have elected (representatives).

3. In the contest for top posts in component parties, the election is dependent on close (connections between) the candidates (and) the PBB leadership. In other words, candidates perceived to be supported by the PBB leadership always seems to win. Social and economic issues doesn’t seem to matter, but closeness to the PBB leadership does.”Nanta also said ‘big boys’ in Sarawak BN deny ‘small boys’ any say in the final selection of candidates, whether for a general election, appointment of community chiefs or party leaders.

Since this is subject to final approval by PBB leaders, it makes a mockery of the original concept of the BN power-sharing concept in Sarawak, he said.

“It is perhaps more accurate to say that PBB is not only all too dominant but also domineering in attitude vis-a-vis smaller component parties.”

‘Explore other options’

Nanta urged members of other component parties to examine their options.

In the two examples cited by Beginda, reference was made to selection of candidates for the Sri Aman and Lubok Antu parliamentary seats, held by PRS in the March general election, and to a particular candidate selected for the 2006 state election.

Beginda had reminded the BN top leadership that the coalition must wake up to current political realities and stop being in a state of denial.

“Before, there was only BN which could provide the national leadership. After March 2008, it is clear that PRS has other, perhaps better, options,” he ended with a veiled warning, without elaborating what these options might be.In an immediate reaction to this, Masing - the state assemblyperson for Baleh - distanced the party from the claim, describing it as Beginda’s personal stance.

Masing said he could not stop members from expressing their views but felt that they should not go overboard in their criticism. He also said he would initiate an investigation.

Beginda is one of Masing’s right-hand men and his comments have irked Taib, who is the state BN chairperson.

It is learnt that Taib has told Masing to take disciplinary action against Beginda.

Rumours are circulating that the latter may already have been sacked, but this could not be immediately verified.

Source: www.malaysiakini.com