KUCHING: William Pilo, who may be nominated by Sarawak Workers Party (SWP) to stand in Sri Aman in the impending general election, has advised the Dayak community to reject claims that they would be marginalised by SWP because the party is headed by a Chinese in Larry Sng.
He argued that racism or racial politics had no place in the modern world, and cited the recent re-election of Barack Obama for another term as US President as a good example of this.
“What’s the point of bragging yourself as Dayak this or Dayak that if that political party can’t even improve the living standard of their own community or, even worse, robbed them of their only possession (the land) or cheated them of their minor rural projects,” he said on Thursday.
William, 46, was on a membership drive at Kampung Lemujung in Simunjan. He was accompanied by his 80-year-old father, Michael, who captivated the audience with his fiery speech which was spiced up with wits and humour.
“What we need now is total commitment from our leaders and sincerity in attending to the needs and aspiration of the people. We, in SWP, are doing just that not only for the dayaks but for everyone in the state,” added William, who heads the safety, health and environment section of an oil and gas company overseas.
He also highlighted recent policies of SWP in providing insurance coverage to party members, setting up an education fund, and providing free legal service to those entangled in NCR land disputes.
“We don’t enrich ourselves by making use of the people. Despite being a young party, we will continue to prove that we are really sincere. We may not have a bottomless fund, but we will help where we can.”
William added that he wanted to continue his father’s political legacy, where humility and hard work were the essence.
“I went with my dad to campaign before, and when he was dropped I was not active in politics. I want to make a comeback now.”
He advised voters to approach him if they had any problems, saying his door was always open to them. Alternatively, they could also relay messages through his relatives and friends in Sri Aman.