Local community leaders and longhouse folk show their thumbs-up for the nomination of Nyempah (standing front, seventh right) as the BN candidate for Julau.
JULAU: A group of community leaders here have expressed their support for a local candidate up for contest in Julau on Barisan Nasional (BN) ticket in the next parliamentary election.
The ‘new face’ is said to be Nyempah Sabot, 54, who is Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) Meluan branch chairman and a resident of a local longhouse, Rumah Emparak.
At a gathering of over 800 people in Rumah Liban @ Emparak, Nanga Sebuntang/Nanga Dong in Entabai near here last Sunday, several community leaders said they were glad that a qualified local had stood up to take up the challenge.
They said they had harboured this hope for quite some time, but nobody had dared to stand up – till now.
The ‘Tuai Rumah’ (longhouse chieftain) Liban@Emparak Gueng said the gathering was meant to express their (local community leaders’) support for Nyempah and also to appeal to the top Barisan Nasional (BN) leadership to endorse Nyempah as the BN-PRS candidate for Julau in the parliamentary polls.
“The majority of the voters in Julau are core supporters of BN – we strive to make sure that the seat would remain with BN for many more years to come,” he stressed.
According to fellow ‘tuai rumah’, Robert Datu from Mujuk, said their call for the change of candidate was not because they disliked the incumbent, Datuk Joseph Salang, but because they believed that a local would be in a better position to understand the constituents’ problems and needs.
“Moreover, they (community leaders) are hoping that their course of action would not be misconstrued as not respecting the decision by PRS president (Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Masing) to re-nominate Salang; the move was solely based on the sentiment on the ground, namely to have a local representative.
“The local community leaders truly appreciate the contributions of the incumbent, Datuk Joseph Salang throughout his four terms as Julau representative.”
Philip Belawan, a longhouse chieftain from Nanga Sengaih, said they fully supported Nyempah as apart from being a qualified local candidate, he has good relationships with two assemblymen under Julau – namely Rolland Duat Jubin (Meluan) and Tan Sri William Mawan (Pakan).
“Such good relationships between the leaders would ensure that the constituents would enjoy optimum benefits from the government’s development programmes,” he said.
For Tuai Rumah Guyu Nyandau from Ulu Kanowit, given the current sentiments and local political scenario, he opined that Nyempah would be a better bet to secure Julau in that another hopeful from outside Julau had indicated his interest to contest, either on BN ticket or as an Independent candidate.
Guyu was referring to Larry Sng, who is the former assemblyman for Pelagus.
PRS Central Youth committee member, Hereward Gramong, who also spoke at the gathering, expressed his hope that the party’s top leadership would listen to the voice of the grassroots, especially on matters that involved or affected them directly.
“When the grassroots demand for a change of representative, they must have good reasons to behind this. In this regard, the top BN and PRS leadership ought to give this due consideration,” he said.
Echoing the same sentiment was Penghulu Clement Nesau, who said since the majority of Julau electorate wanted to have a local representative, they should make the effort to bring up the matter to the attention of top PRS leaders, as well as to the Chief Minister and Prime Minister.
Meanwhile, Nyempah – also a PRS supreme council member – said he had agreed to take up the challenge solely because the majority of the constituents wanted a local Iban to represent them.
“Like other Julau folk, I appreciate the incumbent (Salang) for his contributions throughout his four terms as their parliamentarian.
“But the voice demanding for change is ringing louder and louder each day. I have been hearing this call at many leader-with-people sessions hosted by
BN leaders and at several gatherings organised by me,” Nyempah said, adding that he had been receiving encouraging response from the longhouse folk with regard to his nomination for Julau.
“I have also received blessings from the ‘tuai rumah’.
Moreover, Nyempah said he would be planning for more gatherings at longhouses in Meluan and Pakan to gain more support for his plan to contest in Julau under BN ticket.
Most importantly, Nyempah said he was glad that Salang had come up with a statement that he (Nyempah) felt was supportive of his move.
In the statement, Salang indicated that should he be asked to give way, he would want an Iban from Julau to replace him, not a non-local.
Salang stated this in response to Larry Sng’s intention to contest in Julau on BN ticket in the next parliamentary election, which was published on The Borneo Post last week.
“Moreover Salang had, during various occasions previously, voiced out his readiness to pass the baton to younger and more energetic leaders, including myself,” claimed Nyempah.