KUCHING: Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM) under the leadership of Datuk Larry Sng is not going anywhere, like all previous parties formed and led by him before, such as Sarawak Workers Party (SWP).
Datuk Prof Dr Jayum Jawan said the Julau MP had been hopping from one party to the other, seeking one that suited his personal political trajectory.
“Malaya is founded on race-based politics. And when Malaysia was formed, this Malayan influence sustained and continues to colour Malaysian politics to this day,” the Professor of Political Science and Fellow, Academy of Sciences, Malaysia told New Sarawak Tribune on Thursday (Feb 9).
“Thus, if Sng is serious about wanting to sustain in politics, he has to get the communal endorsement from his own community for him to be respected in politics. There is no two ways about this,” he explained.
Even with PBM shifting its attention and resources in Sarawak, Prof Jayum opined that the party would not make any difference as “they are a group of expired politicians out to resurrect their declining career.”
“They list promises that they could have materialised while some of them were in government. Now it is too late to fool people who have wised up to politics. They can bark but cannot deliver.”
“At the rate that Sarawak is getting concessions from Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, PBM as well as Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) and all other small opposition parties, have nothing to parade to attract support,” he added.
Sng recently said that the party was now able to project a stronger East Malaysian outlook on national policymaking following the dismissal of Zuraida Kamaruddin and 10 others last December as well as resignations from Peninsular party members.
He also said that his party was not going to vanish as it had four years to plan, engage and deliver on its vision to party members, constituents and the rest of the country.
Meanwhile, political analyst Dr Lee Kuok Tiung said PBM was Sng’s one-man show – the party decided to shift its focus back to Sarawak after failing to go national and could not work well with politicians from West Malaysia.
“But, Sarawak is overcrowded with various political parties, therefore Sng needs to identify his party’s niche and strength in order to attract more Sarawakians.
“He needs solid support at grassroots level to move forward in Sarawak and to play a significant role in Sarawak politics,” he added.
On the fate of the party, Lee opined that those opportunists who wished to climb up in their current party but stuck with the party structure and hierarchy would see PBM as an opportunity.
However, he warned that to gain the support from the grassroots would definitely be a challenging task, even a local opposition party like PSB, led by veteran politician Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh, found that it was tough in the 15th general election in December last year.
