Masing: Our main concern is Pakatan Rakyat

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EVERYTHING IS FINE: Land Development Minister Tan Sri Dr James Masing (left) and Chong Chieng Jen (DAP-Kota Sentosa) share a joke when bumping into each other at the DUN building lobby yesterday. They had earlier traded barbs at the assembly over the plight and political stand of handicapped farmer Frusis Lebi whose welfare assistance and agriculture subsidies were discontinued by the government recently.

KUCHING: The main concern of Parti Rakyat Sarawak is no longer Sarawak Workers Party but rather Pakatan Rakyat, says its president Tan Sri Dr James Masing.

Why? The people are already aware who is actually behind the setting up of the new party.

“As such, SWP under its prime mover Datuk Sng Chee Hua, would not be a threat to PRS.

“Our voters have good judgement of characters and they know who Datuk Sng is,” Masing told the media after his winding-up speech at the State Legislative Assembly here yesterday.

Instead, he said PRS and the whole BN had to take Pakatan Rakyat seriously as it was a proper organisation.

“As a BN component party, we cannot take Pakatan Rakyat lightly.

“We have to fight hard and work hard. That’s how we should do it.”

On the party’s candidate for Hulu Rajang, Masing who is also senior minister reiterated that its MP Datuk Billy Abit Joo’s name had been dropped from the party’s list that was forwarded to the top BN leadership.

“We have made our decision on the matter.

“In any organisation, each member must abide by the decision of the leaders.

“So, I hope that Datuk Billy will adhere to party decision.

“It’s not the question of whether you are still healthy or still young. It’s a question of ‘enough is enough’.”

Abit has been telling his constituents that he still had a chance to be re-nominated by the BN to contest in the coming general election.

Masing said that PRS did have a say in the fielding of candidates in seats allocated to it.

When asked whether Abit would be dismissed from the party for his continued defiance against the decision of the party leadership, Masing said the party would not take such drastic action but instead would persuade him to step down gracefully.

“We have to give him time to ‘absorb’ the decision that we have made as far as Hulu Rajang is concerned,” said Masing.

Meanwhile, state PKR vice-chairman See Chee How confirmed that his party was eyeing six PRS seats as well as seats of other BN component parties.

“We have identified our candidates for the seats that we will be contesting in the coming general election.

“At the moment we are targeting 10 to 15 seats,” said See, who is also Batu Lintang assemblyman.

Last week, state DAP chairman, Wong Ho Leng, also revealed that his party was eyeing 12 to 15 seats.

If PKR and DAP get 15 seats each, then PAS, which is one of their partners in Pakatan Rakyat would be getting just one seat.

On the state BN front, PBB has been allocated 14 seats, SUPP (seven) PRS (six) and SPDP (four).