By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Aug 24: The next Sarawak election should not be reduced to a question of how many seats Peninsular-based political parties can win, but who should have the say in shaping the State’s future, says Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP) Batu Kitang Branch secretary Amy Tnay Li Ping.
She said Sarawakians should seriously consider whether they want homegrown political parties or political parties from outside Sarawak to have a greater influence over the State’s political direction.
“The key issue in the next Sarawak election is not how many seats the Democratic Action Party (DAP) from Peninsular Malaysia can win, but whether the people of Sarawak want political parties from outside Sarawak to further expand their presence and influence in Sarawak’s political landscape,” she said in a statement today.
Tnay said Sarawak’s history, geography, economic structure, social environment and development needs were significantly different from those of Peninsular Malaysia.
As such, she questioned whether political approaches developed in the peninsula could adequately reflect Sarawak’s interests.
She also questioned whether Peninsular-based parties could genuinely place Sarawak’s interests first when they operated under nationwide structures, followed national political agendas and were ultimately guided by central leadership.
“Is Sarawak’s interest truly their highest priority?” she asked.
Tnay said the question was not directed at any particular individual, but was one that Sarawakians needed to consider when deciding their political direction.
She said the presence of Peninsular-based parties in Sarawak and the number of seats they held did not automatically mean the State’s interests would be better protected.
“Winning more seats does not necessarily mean Sarawak’s rights will be better protected. Having a louder voice does not necessarily mean that the voice genuinely represents Sarawak,” she said.
Tnay pointed to issues including Sarawak’s autonomy and fiscal rights, oil and natural resources, education, healthcare and the distribution of development resources, saying voters should look beyond election slogans and assess what political parties had actually fought for and delivered.
She said homegrown political parties had been rooted in Sarawak for decades and had a more direct understanding of the challenges faced by its different communities and regions.
“The next Sarawak election should not merely be an election in which political parties calculate how many seats they want to win.
“More importantly, it should be an election in which the people of Sarawak rethink their political direction,” she said.
Tnay urged voters to consider what kind of government and political representatives they wanted, as well as who they wanted to entrust with deciding Sarawak’s future.
She said Sarawak’s destiny should not be predetermined by any political party or decided by the central leadership of any party.
“Sarawak’s destiny should remain in the hands of the people of Sarawak,” she said.
Tnay added that every vote would determine not only which candidate was elected, but also what kind of political force would lead Sarawak, what vision would guide its development and what position Sarawak should have within the nation’s political framework.
“The ultimate decision on who should represent Sarawak does not belong to the headquarters of any political party.
“It belongs to the people of Sarawak,” she emphasised. — DayakDaily
