KUCHING, Nov 3: The upcoming 12th Sarawak Election (PRN12) is not a Sarawak affair alone because it involves manpower from various government agencies, said Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) president Voon Lee San.
As such, he cautioned against holding it at the moment as the Dewan Undangan Negeri (DUN) only expires in June, 2021.
“There is nothing to warrant Sarawak to hold the PRN12 at the moment. This is because the term of the current GPS (Gabungan Parti Sarawak) government only expires by the first week of June 2021, if calculated from the first sitting of DUN after the last Sarawak Elections (held in 2016),” Voon said in a statement issued here today.
Besides that, the PRN12 would also involve various department agencies such as Elections Commission, army and the Police from Putrajaya.
“At the moment our people are more worried about their safety and the economy rather than about elections. And to rush holding the elections now is not ethical and not democratic because many Sarawakians would not be able to come back to vote.
“Turnout would also be low and this will affect the legitimacy of the elections and the government that would be formed thereafter. We had enough of talks of “backdoor” government,” he said.
Voon warned that strict enforcement of standard operating procedures (SOP) during the campaign period will not guarantee that there would be no spike of Covid-19 cases.
“The sudden surge of this Covid-19 in Kuching is a cause of much worry to everybody. There are too many Covid-19 clusters now.
“(So), to come with SOP that restricts gatherings and house to house campaigns as proposed by some quarters during elections is undemocratic and unconstitutional. This is against freedom of movement, a right protected in the constitution,” added Voon. — DayakDaily
