Senior leaders from Sarawak United Peoples Party (SUPP) strongly objected during the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly sitting today after Sarawak DAP chief Chong Chien Jen allegedly linked several senior SUPP leaders to gangster figures in the state.
SUPP central committee senior member Wilfred Yap urged the assembly to remove Chong’s remarks from the Hansard, arguing that the allegations unfairly tarnished the image of the party and its members.
The controversy erupted after Chong claimed that several top SUPP leaders had allegedly been seen with individuals believed to be gang leaders, including one suspect recently arrested during raids conducted by Bukit Aman’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in southern Sarawak.
Yap argued that Chong had crossed the line between legitimate political debate and baseless accusations.
“YB Chong has gone beyond proper debate by suggesting that SUPP is linked to gangsters simply because certain individuals were seen together with alleged gang members at public events,” he said during the assembly session.
He added that the remarks were unfair to thousands of SUPP members throughout Sarawak and should not be recorded in the official Hansard proceedings.
Earlier during the sitting, Chong tabled a motion requesting Deputy Speaker Idris Buang to recuse himself from presiding over the matter after Idris barred Chong from debating the alleged gangster links involving SUPP.
Chong argued that the issue deserved public debate as Bukit Aman CID had publicly confirmed the recent arrests of suspected gang members and an alleged gang leader in Sarawak.
“The arrests were widely publicised and involved extensive operations by the Federal Police,” Chong said.
“It would be an affront to democracy if this August House prevents this important issue from being debated. The rakyat deserve to know the truth regarding gangster activities in Sarawak,” he added.
Idris later announced that he would step aside from handling the matter and allow Speaker Asfia Awang Nassar to decide whether the motion should proceed for debate.
The current Sarawak State Assembly sitting is scheduled to continue until May 20.
