Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) president Voon Lee Shan has called on Sarawakians to support the opposition and prevent ruling coalition Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) from winning all 82 seats in the upcoming state election.
Voon said GPS had a clear advantage over its rivals because of its incumbency and extensive resources, making it difficult for opposition parties to compete.
“PBK cannot allow GPS a clean sweep in all 82 seats, or else democracy will give rise to a tyrant and a dictatorship,” Dayak Daily quoted him as saying.
He acknowledged that PBK, which currently has no seats in the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly, would be “fighting a giant”.
Voon also called for a change of government in Sarawak, citing unresolved issues involving the state’s oil and gas resources and the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).
His remarks came a day after state minister Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said GPS backbenchers would keep the state government in check if the coalition won every seat in the next election.
Karim said backbenchers could serve as a pressure group “like the opposition”, adding that the state administration also had an ombudsman unit and other mechanisms to ensure accountability.
The Sarawak state election could be held as early as December.
