SUPP fears further losses after Sibu
“We don’t want this trend to come to Sarawak. And I advise those peninsular parties not to play up religion because in Sarawak we believe that Chinese, Ibans, Malays and Melanaus can eat and sit together,” he said.
By Roselind Jarrow, Free Malaysia Today
KUCHING: The defeat of Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) in the Sibu by-election has been a bitter pill to swallow so much so its leaders, unable to come to terms with the result, are now behaving like grouches.
In the process of licking their wounds, party leaders are now laying the blame for the defeat on the Peninsular style of politics that was introduced in the by-election.
Their griping is understandable given the fact that SUPP was given the short shrift on home ground which it had controlled and ruled for the past 20 years.
But what SUPP really fears is the tsunamic effect which may cost it the seats that the party is holding now such as Pelawan, Bawang Assan (both under the Sibu parliamentary constituency), Dudong, Repok, Batu Kawah, Pujut, Senadin and Piasau (all Chinese majority seats) and mixed seats like Simanggang, Opar and Bengoh.
In the 2006 state election, SUPP lost eight seats, including seven Chinese majority seats to the opposition. Now, the party is facing the reality of becoming a mosquito party.
It was not lost on SUPP president George Chan when he said the defeat in Sibu should serve as a warning to all BN component parties to live up to the people’s expectations.
“Is this defeat a sign of things to come in the next election? I don’t know. But what happened in Sibu is definitely a good lesson for SUPP,” he said.
But in comforting and consoling SUPP, state BN leaders are telling SUPP leaders not to worry over the defeat, describing it as a small loss.
“It will not affect the state election,” said Asfia Awang Nasar, Speaker of the state legislative assembly.
State BN chairman Taib Mahmud told SUPP that its defeat in Sibu did not reflect the overall support of the majority of the people towards the BN.
James Masing, president of Parti Rakyat Sarawak, agreed that the defeat would not impact the BN in the state election.
Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party president William Mawan Ikom said the BN would win back the seat in the next general election.
“With the government’s commitment in taking care of the people, we should be able to get back the people’s trust and win back Sibu,” he said.
