Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah – File photo
KUCHING: Pakatan Harapan (PH) Sarawak chairman Chong Chieng Jen is said to be willing to turn his back on Sarawak just for the sake of ingratiating his ‘boss’ in Peninsular Malaysia, said PBB vice-president Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.
Abdul Karim said he was sad to see the PH leader who had been so vocal about fighting for Sarawak but after being appointed as a deputy federal minister, Chong had changed his direction by saying that only a national party that is PH can make a difference to Sarawak and not local parties like the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS).
“Where is Chong’s loyalty to Sarawak? I would like to ask him whether Sarawak’s infrastructure and landscape changes have been made by parties from Malaya or by Sarawak-born parties all this while?
“There’s no need for Chong to lift his boss like Lim Guan Eng and look down on the ability of GPS and the GPS state leaders by calling GPS incompetent,” he added when contacted today.
Apart from that, Abdul Karim who is also Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports would also like to remind Chong that the development of Malaysia and Malaya came mostly from the natural resources of Sarawak.
“Without the resources from Sarawak, Malaysia would not have Petronas Twin Towers, PutraJaya, the North South Expressway, the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and more,” he said.
Additionally, Abdul Karim said Chong has the audacity to make less favorable impression on the state’s party and local leaders even though his promises before the 14th General Election (GE14) have not been fulfilled.
“Where is the promise of 20 per cent oil royalty? Where is the 50 per cent tax collected in Sarawak promised to be returned to the state?,” he questioned.
In his speech during an event hosted by PH at a local hotel here on Sunday, Chong, who is also the chairman of the Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) said there was a need for Sarawakians to make the change in the state government in order for Sarawak to have a state government that can have a better relationship with the federal government.
Hence, he said the voters in Sarawak should vote for PH instead of GPS in the coming state election.