KUCHING, July 30: The extension of Emergency for Sarawak is expected because the Covid-19 situation in the State has not reach the thresholds that the Ministry of Health (MOH) and Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) have set.
Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) Supreme Council member Dato Sri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said the move had been discussed at length by both the Federal and State governments.
“Both parties have agreed (on the decision to extend the Emergency) following MOH advice. This is to avoid the recurring of the Sabah episode in September 2020. This time it’s more critical for reason of the Covid-19 Delta variant present in Sarawak as well as in the Peninsula.
“Even though the Chief minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg and Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) component parties would like to go back to the people to renew their mandate in the State election, they as responsible leaders have to put human lives as priority first,” he said in a statement today.
He was responding the localised Emergency declared in Sarawak, effective from Aug 2, 2021 until Feb 2, 2022, to prevent the State polls during the pandemic, which the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah has consented as revealed in a Federal Gazette issued late Friday night (July 30).
With that, the State polls that was required to take place within 60 days after the national Emergency scheduled to expire tomorrow (Aug 1), have once again been suspended.
Wan Junaidi, who is also Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives, pointed out that the GPS is prepared for the elections since leaders and their elected representatives have been on the ground since 2019.
He said since the start of the Covid-19 outbreak and the implementation of Movement Control Order (MCO) in March last year, the GPS elected representatives have been working quietly and tirelessly in the urban centres, villages, longhouses and the isolated interior areas.
“We have been and are working hard to deliver food and provisions to those who are affected as well as setting up vaccination centres (PPVs) throughout the State to rol out vaccines for the people,” he elaborated.
That apart, he said that the Chief Minister and his Cabinet team have been everywhere to oversee projects and programmes implemented by the governments, ensuring that they continue to progress despite the challenging times and supply chain disruptions during the Conditional MCO.
“The State is ready and GPS is ready for the election. However, with the Covid-19 situation that we are facing, the State leadership believes that saving human lives and to prevent spread of infections that could lead to deaths and sufferings must be given priority to any other considerations,” he added.— DayakDaily
