‘Who is loser Foo to ask minister to resign?’

0
Abdul Karim (second from left) sharing a light moment with State Legislative Assembly Speaker Datuk Amar Mohd Asfia Awang Nassar (left) at the former’s Raya open house in Kuching yesterday. With them is Abdul Karim’s wife, Datin Zuraini Abdul Jabbar

Abdul Karim (second from left) sharing a light moment with State Legislative Assembly Speaker Datuk Amar Mohd Asfia Awang Nassar (left) at the former’s Raya open house in Kuching yesterday. With them is Abdul Karim’s wife, Datin Zuraini Abdul Jabbar

KUCHING: Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) Youth leader Milton Foo has been slammed for calling on Second Minister of Finance Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh to resign from his post.

Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) Supreme Council member Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah pointed out that Foo was defeated by the opposition in Pending during the May polls but Wong, who is United People’s Party (UPP) president, won his seat of Bawang Assan for Barisan Nasional (BN).

“Wong was accepted by the rakyat; he won the election while Milton lost the election,” Abdul Karim told reporters at his Hari Raya Aidilfitri open house yesterday.

“I do not know if he (Foo) is in the position to comment on this matter. Whatever Milton says, I think the voice of the rakyat has more prominence.”

Abdul Karim opined that leaders from SUPP and UPP ought to sort out their differences behind closed doors instead of going to the press.

“Not everything must be out in the open. Politics is fluid, you can be enemies today and tomorrow you can be friends. It is for the parties – SUPP and UPP – to look at it from a bigger view point.

“They might not be able to do it now, but they must have the feelings of seeing the Chinese community as a united whole. I believe they can work it out nicely and get together because their struggle is more or less the same, adhering to what BN is fighting for in Sarawak and Malaysia.”

Abdul Karim said it is high time for SUPP and UPP leaders to stop “bitterly criticising one another or keep on going to the media to voice their grievances”.

If left unchecked, he said it would be quite unlikely for the two parties to be on the same track again.

“Just like husband and wife quarrelling, they have to find a way of building up the relationship. It may take a little bit of time but it is for the people of Sarawak.

“I’d love to see them close together again. Wong has his vast experience in politics and (SUPP president Datuk) Dr Sim (Kui Hian) might be still young even though he came from a family with a strong political background, that his late father was a deputy chief minister.”

Stressing that politics “isn’t something to learn in a year or two”, Abdul Karim said Dr Sim “still has a lot of things to pick up along the way”.

He called on veteran SUPP leaders to guide the party as well as its young leadership so that they would be able to bring the people of various races in Sarawak together.

“The struggle is a long way and SUPP is the oldest political party, formed way before PBB and other parties, some of which have dissolved. I hope SUPP can withstand all these problems and be strong as it used to be.”

In a statement yesterday, Foo, among others, said Wong should tender his resignation since he had chosen to stay with UPP, a non-BN component party.

“By going back to UPP and helming UPP, Wong clearly has no intention to honour his previous undertakings to BN but to mock and devour the BN spirit and principles in his decision to rejoin UPP.

“Therefore we believe that he (Wong) is not fit to hold any ministerial post and he shall resign forthwith,” said the statement.