By Peter Sibon
KUCHING, August 12: Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr James Jemut Masing is optimistic that if Sarawak Election were to be held at the right timing, Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) can win in all its 72 currently-held seats, plus a few more urban seats.
He believed that the most opportune time to held the next State election is next year when state-funded projects are taking off full swing.
Describing GPS as a table, he said all the four legs must be protected against ‘termites’ for it to stand firm.
“So, we in GPS must take care of these four legs and should not allow termites to attack any of the legs otherwise it will get singit (slanted) and eventually it will collapse. We must work as a team and we will be formidable enough to take down our challengers.
“And I would like to reiterate the analogy of a ‘boat’ that we must allow the Chief Minister (Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg) to be our captain and all of us must assist him to ply through the Pelagus rapids.
“That way, I believed GPS is solid enough to ward off any challenges from the opposition,” Masing told DayakDaily here today.
Masing, who is also Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) president said GPS, which consisted of Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP), PRS and Progressive Democratic Party (PDP), will fare well as the ruling coalition is people-centric while the opposition especially Pakatan Harapan (PH), is self-centric.
“The way I see it now, PBB can win all its seats 100 per cent, so too will SUPP, PRS and PDP. And I also strongly believe that we can capture a few urban seats too, provided we work as a term,” he reiterated.
Masing said his optimism was based on the fact that GPS has been embarking on developing the whole State, especially in the rural areas where roads and facilities providing water and electricity are being built.
“While we are focusing on developing the people’s well-being in the State, with the allocations of billions of ringgit in the next two years, PH leaders are busy fighting against each other for positions,” he reiterated.
He also took a swipe at political frogs and described them as self-centered political leaders who are merely looking after their own interests.
“We must look back at their history and we can see that they have been merely looking after their own interests.
“In Iban, there is a saying that we can’t allow these kind of people to be the last man to tie the boat, otherwise the boat will hanyut (drift away). Similarly, in the context of urban setting, we can’t buy any second hand cars from them,” he said.
When asked whether PRS will field any new faces in the upcoming State election, Masing replied,”As of today, we will stick to the present 11 elected representatives as we are focussing to bring development to the people.”
Last year, Abang Johari had announced the State’s allocation of RM11.9 billion – the biggest budget in the State’s history, whereby 76 per cent or RM9.076 billion of the funds would be allocated for development expenditure. And out of this amount, RM6.049 billion would be used to intensify rural development. especially for the provision of roads, electricity and water supplies. — DayakDaily
