KUCHING: A political analyst foresees Sarawak PKR not making any impact in terms of getting support from the Dayaks and Malays, saying the party had chosen the wrong leader to lead the state.
Julau MP Larry Sng is currently the chairman of Sarawak PKR. He replaced Selangau MP Baru Bian, who quit the party in February following the country’s political crisis.
“PKR won’t make any impact in Dayak areas as it is led by a Chinese — it’s the wrong choice of leader for Sarawak PKR,” Universiti Putra Malaysia’s Jayum Jawan told FMT.
He said the Chinese community in the state would not support PKR, even with a Chinese leader at the helm.
“The Chinese interests are better articulated through DAP or the Sarawak United Peoples’ Party.”
Jawan said PKR would have a better chance of getting the support of the Malays and Dayaks and also going against Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) in the coming state elections if the party was led by a Malay or Dayak.
But it would depend on who the leaders were as only prominent ones could pull the people’s support away from GPS, he said.
GPS, he said, was an established coalition that would not be easy to dislodge by any party in Sarawak.
“GPS has the network, a winning formula and a high degree of cooperation and discipline. These are not found among new parties of lawmakers who are hopping here and there to satisfy their political ambitions,” he said.
Jawan said PKR and DAP could still win some seats in the coming state elections. However, even if both parties were to combine, it would still not be enough for them to take over the government or form a serious opposition bloc.
Meanwhile, Universiti Malaya’s Awang Azman Awang Pawi told FMT that PKR needed new candidates who were able to challenge Saratok MP Ali Biju and Baru in order to regain the seats the party had won.
“PKR now depends on new candidates to fill in the gaps that were left by some of the party’s former leaders,” he said.
