KUCHING, May 16: Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) secretary-general Datuk Joseph Salang has received his defeat with grace but he is not retiring from politics.
Instead, he is all really to continue to serve the people and the party just as before.
“I do politics not for myself but for the people. When and until I feel that people do not need me anymore, I will retire.”
“Whether as an elected representative or an ordinary politician, I will continue to promote PRS, as a member of the supreme council and a member of PRS,” Salang told DayakDaily after the party’s press conference at its headquarters this morning.
Salang who was former Julau MP failed to defend the seat in the May 9 general election by a majority of 1,931 votes, losing to independent candidate Larry Sng in a constituency with voters totalling 25,429.
Salang said he begun his involvement in politics much earlier than many in PRS including his president Tan Sri Dr James Jemut Masing.
“In 1974, I even contested against Tun Abdul Rahman Ya’kub before. I know what is politics.
“I am not disappointed (referring to recent loss in Julau). Winning and losing is always part of politics. As much as you would like to win, you must also accept losing,” said Salang.
Salang was MP for Julau since 1999 where Julau had always been seen as one of the strongholds of Barisan Nasional and PRS.
Salang said without being MP, he would have more time for his family apart from the fact that he would continue to serve the people and the party.
“Since my house burned down, I now have a better view of the rising moon,” said Salang, quoting Mizuta Masahide, a seventeenth-century Japanese poet and samurai. — DayakDaily
