KUCHING, Dec 11: Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) president Tan Sri Dr James Jemut Masing today schooled Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) and Dayak young Turks to learn the art of politics from experienced Dayak politicians.
He said that while it is good to know that young Dayak leaders have high hopes of what they could and wish to achieve for their communities, they must learn to be patient in order to achieve their aspirations.
“They haven’t gone through the ‘battlefields’ of politics as I and some veteran Dayaks YBs (elected representatives) had gone through. They (youth) don’t have the experience and skills to balance the ‘pushes and pulls’ of governing a multi-racial State like Sarawak as some of us do.
“To achieve the correct balance is easier said than done. Political bravados and emotion aren’t good enough to do the job. To be successful administrators, YBs need the assistance of all stakeholders in this country. Thus, age and experience in politics are very valuable assets in governing Sarawak,” Masing said in a statement issued here today.
Masing, who is also Deputy Chief Minister asserted that although youth may offer vitality, it is age and experience that provide wisdom in administering and guiding the nation to move forward peacefully.
“So please don’t be mistaken that only the youth are good and only replacement for experience in politics,” said Masing.
He was responding to PBDS president Bobby William who said that his party never thought of having a Dayak-centric government but instead to continue voicing the aspirations of the Dayak community at both State and national levels.
“What we think is all about representing the Dayaks’ voice in Sarawak and in Malaysia. What is wrong with being ambitious Dayaks, not to mention PBDS, but all Dayaks across Malaysia,” Bobby said in a statement issued to DayakDaily yesterday.
Bobby’s statement was in response to Masing’s earlier statement which highlighted the fact that it was a lost cause for the Dayaks to fight for a Dayak-centric administration in Sarawak.
Masing had claimed that he and other Dayak leaders have tried it not once but twice, in 1987 and 1991, to gain control of the State’s administration but have failed.
Responding to Masing’s claim of fighting a lost cause, Bobby then asked him (Masing) to retire from politics. -DayakDaily
