SIBU, April 14: DAP Sarawak Women is calling on all Sarawakian voters working outside the state to return to vote in the 14th General Election (GE14) with polling on May 9, a Wednesday.
Its chief Irene Chang said the fact that caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told those working outside not to come back to vote, showed that there was a chance for the opposition to take over the government.
“The call by caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid to Malaysians working in Singapore not to return to vote if they cannot take leave on May 9 shows the obvious attempt by the caretaker government to encourage a low voter turn-out in the coming GE14.
“It also shows the real possibility of Pakatan Harapan taking over and forming the new government.
“I therefore call on all Sarawakians working and staying outside Sarawak to play our part in defining the change process of our country by defying Ahmad Zahid’s call and to make arrangement to travel back to speak through their votes by voting against corruption, unemployment, abuse of power, mismanagement of our country’s resources
and all the other excesses.
“I call on Sarawakians to vote against BN (Barisan Nasional) and to vote for Pakatan Harapan for the restoration of our country’s economy, wealth and dignity on the international stage,” said Chang in a statement today.
She said the coming GE14 would be the best chance for Sarawakians to take charge and lead in the transformation of Malaysia from a broken country to a strong and thriving nation.
The first term Bukit Assek assemblywoman said though Sarawak and Sabah are known to be the fixed deposits of BN, the two regions have been taken advantage of.
“We are not known as their fixed deposit state for nothing, because if not for Sabah and Sarawak, BN would have been defeated long ago as can been seen from the fact that they only managed to win the 2008 election by a simple majority and had actually lost in the popularity vote to the opposition in GE13 in 2013.
“And with the ‘gift’ of being a fixed deposit state, what does Sarawak gain in return? A low-income state with low employment opportunities which has to annually beg the federal government for allocations of funds for the basic needs of our people and empty promises by the federal government of devolution of powers which remains unfulfilled.
“Therefore, with the coming general election (voting day) fixed on 9 May, 2018, I call on the voters in our state to be the kingmakers and be the agent of change in Malaysia.
“I strongly call on Sarawakians to be bold enough to embrace change by rejecting BN in the coming GE14 and to give Pakatan Harapan a chance to rebuild our state by restoring every right which has been taken from us by the federal government,” said Chang. — DayakDaily
