KUCHING: Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Sarawak has been urged to reconsider their decision not to contest in the Jepak state seat by-election on Nov 4.
DAP Jepak chairman Tonny Ung said the political scenario in Sarawak is different from the situation at the national level; where PKR remains as the opposition in Sarawak.
“There is no establishment of a unity government at the Sarawak state; the cooperation between Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and PKR is only at the national/federal level,” he said.
“In fact, Paktan Harapan (PH) Sarawak which consists of DAP, PKR and AMANAH is seen as an opposition entity at the state level by the GPS government,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Apart from that, he said, in order to ensure democracy; it requires checks and balances in the Sarawak state legislative assembly, thus, the opposition has a role to play in this aspect.
Ung claimed that GPS, which won 76 out of 82 state seats in the last state election and the recent proposed merger of Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) and Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) will further reduce the number of opposition in Sarawak.
“This has affected the checks and balances role of the Sarawak state assembly on the executive,” he said.
He said all policies at the state level should be debated and refined by all stakeholders and not monopolized by GPS alone.
“Therefore, we strongly opined that there is a need for PKR to participate in the upcoming Jepak by-election as well as to strengthen democracy,” he added.
Sarawak PKR will not challenge the state’s ruling coalition GPS in the coming Jepak by-election, said its state party deputy chairman Abun Sui.
On Sept 26, he had said state PKR leaders unanimously agreed not to field a candidate in Jepak, despite it was a traditional seat which the party contested in the past elections.
He said the political scenario is very different now, and PKR are partners with GPS in the unity government in Putrajaya.
However, he said that the other PH partners are free to make their own decisions.
The Jepak by-election will be on Nov 4, with nominations on Oct 21 and early voting on Oct 31.
This was following the death of incumbent assemblyman Datuk Talib Zulpilip, 72, on Sept 15.
Talib, who was formerly a minister in the state premier’s department, was a six-term assemblyman from Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu, a component of the GPS state government.
