KUCHING: Independent Lubok Antu MP Jugah Muyang should be allowed to rejoin Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) views political analyst Dick Lembang Dugun.
The Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) lecturer said Jugah is still a winnable candidate in the parliamentary constituency and can continue to win the seat in the coming General Election (GE15).
“Through my observation, PRS should take the opportunity to accept and accommodate Jugah’s application to rejoin PRS,” he told New Sarawak Tribune today.
The MP had applied to join PRS in February. He won the Lubok Antu seat in GE14 on an independent ticket, wining by a majority of 1,059 votes. He joined Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) in May 2018, but quit the party in June 2020 to become an independent MP.
He was previously a member of PRS and held the position of chairman of the Pujut Division in Miri before moving to Lubok Antu in 2016. He was appointed deputy chairman of the PRS Engkilili Division.
Lembang said Jugah’s performance and acceptance by the grassroots will be a advantage to both PRS and GPS. He said it is as good as having the seat in the bag.
“On top of that, there were talks among the grassroots that their leader – the longhouse head or village chiefs in Lubok Antu will petition to support Jugah and ask the PRS leadership to accept him.
“If this is true, there is no excuse by PRS to reject Jugah,” he said, adding that the party might lose their traditional seat if Jugah were to join other GPS component parties.
He said the party must come to a decision to accept the MP into the fold and field him as a candidate in the upcoming general election. “The past is the past, PRS must now see the future,” he said.
Last week, PRS said its supreme council will decide on the membership application submitted by Jugah. Party president Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum said a date had yet to be fixed for the supreme council to call its meeting.
Earlier, it was revealed by PRS Youth chief Datuk Snowdan Lawan that Jugah’s application is still under “Keep in View” tray (KIV) as decided by the party’s supreme council.
He said this is because the application was met with strong protests from unhappy party members, especially those from the Engkilili division, who questioned Jugah’s motive to be a PRS member again at this stage.
