KUCHING, Nov 29: Sarawak Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) has denied allegations that the party is “greedy” for seats to contest during the upcoming 12th Sarawak Election.
Its information chief Abun Sui Anyit said the political party is contesting in rural seats which Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) does not wish to contest in order to avoid giving Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) a free walkover.
“We would like to reiterate that most of the seats that Keadilan Sarawak are contesting are those that DAP Sarawak has limited or no grassroots presence in.
“The majority of these are seats that DAP themselves do not wish to contest.
“Keadilan Sarawak has therefore taken on the responsibility of contesting in a larger number of seats in the past as a way of supporting Sarawak grassroots activists and local communities against corruption, injustice and excesses that have plagued Sarawak for far too long,” he said in a press statement today.
Abun Sui noted rural seats in Sarawak are particularly challenging to win due to campaign logistics, State resource capture, lack of digital connectivity and voter literacy.
On seats where there are overlapping claims with Sarawak DAP, he said Sarawak PKR maintained that candidate selection must be based on clear facts, figures and the candidate’s Key Performance Indicator (KPI) before fielding the best winnable candidate.
He pointed out that selecting a candidate with strong grassroots presence and support is vital in Sarawak.
“In seats that our coalition partners lost in the 2016 State Election, a seat swap is reasonable if Keadilan is able to show they have a stronger candidate with a better chance of winning.
“We are engaging with Sarawak opposition parties and want to continue engaging with DAP Sarawak to find the best winning formula for seats in PRN12,” he added.
Abun Sui said empowering the people of Sarawak, particularly in the rural heartland, to demand political and socio-economic reform through free and fair elections remains Sarawak PKR’s focus and priority. — DayakDaily
