By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Feb 4: The Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) Central Region has warned that Sarawak United Peoples’ Party’s (SUPP) alleged overstepping of authority and avoidance of responsibility over the appointment of community leaders issue could weaken Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) from within and risk sealing the coalition’s fate without any need for opposition intervention.
In a statement today, PDP Central Region said it was deeply disappointed with SUPP for reviving the 2021 Sarawak election candidate issue instead of addressing the core concern raised by its party president Dato Sri Tiong King Sing over alleged interference by SUPP president Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian in Dudong affairs.
According to PDP Central Region, SUPP’s move to revisit past election matters was a deliberate attempt to deflect attention from the real issue, avoid accountability and mislead the public. The party described such behaviour as lacking credibility and unable to withstand scrutiny.
PDP Central Region stressed that the decision for Tiong to contest in Dudong during the 2021 State election was a collective one made by GPS under the leadership of its chairman and Sarawak Premier, Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg, with the clear objective of securing the seat for the coalition.
“The political reality is equally clear. Without Tiong King Sing’s candidacy in 2021, GPS would have faced a high risk of losing Dudong, given SUPP’s repeated failures to win the constituency in previous elections. This is not political narrative. It is historical fact,” the statement said.
The party questioned whether SUPP was now disputing the decision of the GPS chairman, saying that if it was not, SUPP should stop making indirect insinuations that confuse the public.
“If yes, then SUPP must state its position openly, because such a stance effectively challenges the Chairman’s judgement, authority, and leadership,” it added.
PDP Central Region reiterated that Tiong is the duly elected assemblyman for Dudong and that, under Sarawak’s long-established political practice and principles of good governance, the elected representative has the final authority in the appointment of community leaders within the constituency.
It said community leaders must work closely with the local assemblyman on a long-term basis to manage public affairs and implement development initiatives, ultimately for the benefit of the people.
PDP Central Region warned that any form of external intervention, regardless of rank or title, undermines institutional order, creates confusion at the grassroots level and erodes the legitimacy of the elected representative in the eyes of voters.
It claimed that Dr Sim’s involvement in Dudong has led to such consequences, disrupting coordination and damaging Tiong’s standing in the constituency. PDP Central Region cautioned that if such conduct continued, the greatest casualty would not be any single party or individual, but GPS itself.
“In any coalition, success is shared and failure is collective. When member parties undermine one another and disregard agreed boundaries, the alliance does not need external pressure to collapse. It weakens itself from within,” the statement said.
PDP Central Region emphasised that GPS must be more than a symbolic coalition by upholding discipline, respecting collective decisions and preventing any member or individual from overstepping authority at the grassroots level.
“If SUPP is genuinely committed to the unity and stability of GPS, it must confront the real issue, stop shifting narratives and respect both local electoral mandates and coalition mechanisms,” the statement added, warning that once internal conflict becomes the norm, the opposition would not even need to intervene. — DayakDaily
