Wilfred Yap
KUCHING: Rumour of Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) teaming up with Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) to challenge Barisan Nasional (BN) in the coming state election is ridiculous.
SUPP Youth secretary-general Wilfred Yap in saying this said both parties were component parties of Barisan Nasional and had been loyal partners of the BN government all these years.
“The two parties do not need to contest against BN and have no intention of doing so as both are part and parcel of the state Barisan,” he said in a statement yesterday.
He said this in response to Opar assemblyman Ranum Mina, who in a Wednesday news report was quoted as saying that such rumours could be real and nothing was impossible in politics.
Ranum is one of four assemblymen led by Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh who quit SUPP to join Teras.
According to the Wednesday report, rumours have it that SPDP and SUPP would team up with opposition Sarawak Workers Party (SWP) to contest in their traditional seats should BN is represented by the incumbents who recently joined Teras, which now has 10 assemblymen.
Yap said he was greatly disappointed and shocked by the baseless and irresponsible statement blatantly made by Ranum.
“Ranum was elected on SUPP’s ticket, representing BN in the last state election in 2011, and his statement is, in effect, a deflection of the real issue at hand which is BN solidarity and unity,” he added.
On a related note, Yap reiterated the unwavering stand of SUPP Youth that it would object to any application of any political party, such as Teras, to join the state BN unless there is an absolute consensus from all current BN components.
Yap said that admission of any political party without consensus from all BN component parties would undeniably shake the moral fabrics of solidarity and unity that had held BN together.
As such, he said he had strong confidence that all BN component parties would stand firm in upholding the principles of their partnership and respect the views of all component parties.