PDP to ‘appeal’ to GPS for Batu Lintang seat allocation

KUCHING (Sept 6): Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) will “appeal” to the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) chairman Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg to allocate the Batu Lintang seat to the party.

PDP vice-president Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh said the final decision over the allocation of seats among the GPS components lies with the chairman Abang Johari, who is also Sarawak Premier.

“We will appeal for it, but the final decision lies with the GPS chairman,” said Wong, who is former president of the now-defunct Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB).

“We hope to claim Batu Lintang because it is rightfully ours when the then PSB candidate YB See Chee How won it in the last state election.

“Now that we have joined PDP, we hope that the seat be given to us,” he told The Borneo Post when asked to confirm earlier news reports over the matter.

Wong, who is Bawang Assan assemblyman, was also asked about Bawang Assan and Engkilili seats, and said PDP would be discussing about them “only later”.

PSB was dissolved to pave its way to join PDP early this year.

Prior to that, See had already left PSB to become an independent assemblyman.

Before it was rebranded as PSB, the party was named United People’s Party (UPP).

Batu Lintang, Bawang Assan and Engkilili (held by Dr Johnical Rayong Ngipa) were traditionally allocated to the Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) as part of power sharing concept of the then Sarawak Barisan Nasional (BN) and also now by GPS, except for 2016 state election when the state BN allocated Bawang Assan and Engkilili to BN-direct candidates Wong and Rayong, respectively.

But in the last state election, PSB, being the opposition, won them all.

Batu Lintang, in particular, had been won by other opposition parties, namely Democratic Action Party (DAP) and Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) before PSB did.

Apart from SUPP and PDP, other components of the GPS are the lynchpin Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) and rural-based and Dayak-dominant Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS).