By Shikin Louis
KUCHING, Aug 2: The 13th Sarawak Election may be held before the end of this year as waiting until the current State Legislative Assembly (DUS) term expires would be “too dangerous”, says Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.
The Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Minister said this was his personal observation based on the five-year tenure of the current DUS, which was elected in December 2021.
“The last time we had an election was in December 2021. The tenure for one session or one State Assembly (DUS) is five years, so it ends in December,” he told reporters after attending the IIUM Alumni Ummatic Gathering in Sarawak at Waterfront Hotel here today.
Abdul Karim, who is also Asajaya assemblyman and Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) Information chief, further said although the Federal Constitution provides for the duration of a State Assembly term, it would not be advisable for the government to wait until the term expires naturally before calling for an election.
“Why would the Premier (Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg) wait until the session expires on its own? Usually it would be too dangerous to wait until the session expires. If anything happens at that time, damage control cannot be arranged,” he said.
He said the election would therefore have to be held earlier, adding that the remaining months of the year represented a short political window.
“We are already in July, we are already in August. September, October, November, December — four months. Four months in politics is very, very short,” he said.
Earlier in his speech at the gathering, Abdul Karim noted that the ruling Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) coalition currently holds 80 out of the 82 DUS seats, with only two opposition representatives.
He indicated that the next State Election would take place before the end of the year while highlighting Sarawak’s political stability.
“Rest assured, before the end of the year, when we are going to have our next State Election, rest assured, more or less the balancing will still be like that. We might lose some, we might win almost all the seats,” he stated.
The current Sarawak DUS first sat in February 2022 following the 12th State Election held on Dec 18, 2021. — DayakDaily
