MIRING CEREMONY: (from right) Aaron, Mawan and Alexander performing the ‘miring’ ceremony at a meet-the-people session at Rumah Brian Langit in Sungai Jih on Saturday.
KANOWIT: Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) president Tan Sri William Mawan Ikom said he is ready to negotiate with former party members who had been sacked or quit the party for the interest of Barisan Nasional (BN) and SPDP.
He said SPDP has no problem accepting them back into the party but they must go through a process that had been set as basic conditions by SPDP and BN.
“If we use a shortcut, then we could be facing a bigger problem in the future.
“Furthermore, those who want to return must be honest and sincere to ensure the wellbeing of the party in order to achieve the objective of its struggle,” he said when officiating at a meet-the-people session at Rumah Brian Langit in Sungai Jih here on Saturday.
Among those present at the function were Kanowit MP Datuk Aaron Ago Dagang, Ngemah assemblyman Alexander Vincent, his wife Susan Clement, political secretary to the chief minister Paul Igai and Sibu Rural District Council chairman James Laju Ambok.
Mawan, who is Senior Minister and Minister of Social Development, said every political party including SPDP are beset with its own problems because of different ideology and opinion.
However, he said some things need to be evaluated from a positive angle to achieve the main goal of the party’s struggle which is to fight for the rights of people.
He also advised party members to avoid clashing with each other and thus creating factions among themselves.
“We cannot let this happen in SPDP. Any decision on SPDP’s direction must be based on consensus and taking into account views and opinions of all members,” he said.
He said as a multiracial party, the members must tolerate each other to ensure the party remains strong.
He objected to the opinion that certain positions in the party should be dominated by the majority.
class=MsoNormal>“It looks into the economic growth of the country and ensures our country’s economy continue to be resilient which is important. Basically, in any budget, the most important thing is to ensure the country’s economy will be stable and continues to grow but at the same time the budget has to meet the needs and expectations of the people,” he stressed.