By Nancy Nais
KUCHING, Oct 28: Malaysia is a democratic country, which practices parliamentary democracy and therefore anyone can choose to contest in any seat they want, asserts Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) deputy chairman Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan.
This he said, is not just for Lawas but all the 31 parliamentary seats in Sarawak.
Awang Tengah, who is also the Deputy Premier of Sarawak and Bukit Sari assemblyman was asked to comment on Baru Bian of Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) who is rumoured to be standing in Lawas in the 15th General Election (GE15).
“It is up to him or them. Anyone can contest in Lawas because we are a democratic country. As for GPS, we will not leave any seat uncontested, that’s for sure.
“We are also well prepared for this GE15 and ready to face any challenges,” Awang Tengah told reporters after the soft launch of Sarawak Kitchen in conjunction with the Sarawak Regatta this evening.
Lawas parliamentary seat is currently held by Dato Henry Sum Agong since 2008.
Apart from Bukit Sari, Lawas has another state assembly seat namely Ba’Kelalan which has been held by Baru since 2011.
In GE14, Sum garnered 10,037 votes to beat Danny Piri of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and independent candidate Mohamad Drahim by a majority of 6,000 votes. — DayakDaily
