By Karen Bong
KUCHING, Oct 28:Sarawak police will seek assistance from other police contingents to address a shortage of 889 personnel as they prepare to deploy 7,466 officers and personnel, or nearly 75 per cent of the State’s police workforce, for the upcoming Sarawak election.
Acting Sarawak Police Commissioner DCP Saifullizan Ishak said the Sarawak Police Contingent Headquarters (IPK Sarawak) had begun preparations for the election, including planning and allocating manpower for election-related duties.
“Sarawak currently had 9,979 police officers and personnel, of whom 7,466 would be assigned specifically to election duties.
“The remaining 2,510 personnel, representing 25.15 per cent of the workforce, would continue carrying out their regular duties to maintain normal policing operations.
“We are facing a manpower shortage of 889 officers and personnel. To address this, we may seek assistance from other police contingents, possibly from Sabah. We have already submitted a request for assistance,” he said during a press conference at IPK Sarawak headquarters here today.
Saifullizan said Sarawak had traditionally provided manpower assistance to Sabah during its state elections, and expressed hope that Sabah would be able to reciprocate by providing personnel for the upcoming polls.
He added that preparations were also being made to ensure logistical readiness, particularly as the election would take place during the Northeast Monsoon season.
According to a police infographic, the Sarawak election involving 82 seats will have 1,943 ordinary polling centres with 4,482 ordinary polling channels, as well as 83 early voting centres comprising 106 polling channels.
Based on the electoral roll as of Aug 31, 2026, Sarawak has a total of 2,051,596 voters.
Of this number, 2,027,093 are ordinary voters, while 10,925 are police personnel and their spouses, and another 13,578 are armed forces personnel and their spouses.
The police are making the necessary preparations to ensure sufficient manpower and logistical support are in place for the election while maintaining routine security and public safety operations across Sarawak. — DayakDaily
