Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud
KUCHING: The state Barisan Nasional (BN) will be able to deliver at least 23 seats out of the 31 seats in the upcoming 13th general election, said Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud.
He also revealed that another four seats could still be winnable depending on the mood of the voters, especially in the urban areas.
“I think the lowest (the state BN) would be able to deliver will be at least 23 seats and the highest would be 27. We are estimating this based on the political reality today.
“Maybe in the urban areas, it looks like as if the opposition is getting some support but it is not for Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR). PKR is not welcome here (in Sarawak). DAP (Democratic Action Party) is quite aggressive and they are also trying to make inroads into the Iban community,” Taib told a news blog ‘The Mole’ yesterday.
Touching on the same topic, a reliable source revealed that out of the four state BN component parties, only Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) would not be able to deliver all the seats allocated to it while the rest – Parti Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) and Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) – would achieve 100 per cent victory.
However, with Stampin MP Datuk Yong Khoon Seng’s willingness to reconsider his retirement plan, there is now greater chance for the party to retain the seat.
In other SUPP seats, incumbent Datuk Richard Riot Jaem, who is also Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, would have no problem in retaining its stronghold in Serian.
The source added that state BN was also confident that SUPP would be able to wrest Sibu from DAP, which it lost following the demise of its incumbent Datuk Robert Lau How Chew in April 2010.
SUPP will be fielding Temenggong Vincent Lau, a new face, to square off with DAP in Sibu.
As for other SUPP seats, namely Bandar Kuching, Sarikei, Lanang and Miri, there is still a fighting chance that the party would be able to turn the table on the opposition, added the source.
In the March 2008 general election, state BN won 30 seats but lost Bandar Kuching to DAP. PBB is allocated with 14 seats, SUPP (seven), PRS (six) and SPDP (four).
On another issue, the chief minister said the opposition had been selling the idea that there should be change.
“That they (opposition) are able to take over the government, it’s a normal line. But the people of Sarawak have got to be convinced whether the change is for the better or not. As far as I’m concerned, we cannot afford to have a federal government that is led by people who have less than proven ability.
“To us, Datuk Pattinggi Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak is the best candidate for PM at the moment. I don’t think we should look beyond that,” he opined.
Meanwhile, Taib who is also the Minister of Finance, stressed that the RM5 billion given to Sarawak and Sabah to catch up with the demand for rural roads, electricity and water supply had “more or less covered” all the areas in rural Sarawak.
“Because of that I think the PM will get a great deal of support among the rural people of Sarawak. He’s very sympathetic to Baram which was an area that suffered some difficulties because of its infrastructure which led to migration of a lot of educated people to Miri.
“I think it’s quite natural while we are taking steps to have long-term big development in Baram area, we have to do something within the next 20 years,” he said.
Taib explained that having to develop Baram as one of the areas to produce electricity for Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE), the government has a big plan to change the character of development there.
“Today, Baram is still dependent on timber and lately palm oil but there’s sufficient development in Baram area to support good employment opportunities. We have identified the area where the first dam will be sited and around the dam I see there’s enough development to support about 3,000 to 4,000 employment opportunities,” he explained.