by Debra Chong The Malaysian Insider Apr 16, 2011
KUCHING, April 16 — Flushed with its historic 12-seat victory in Malaysia’s biggest state tonight, the DAP has declared boldly that Sarawak is no longer the ruling Barisan Nasional’s (BN) fixed deposit as the prime minister mulls nationwide polls ahead of its 2013 expiry.
Despite failing to block the BN from winning back its traditional two-thirds control in the oil-rich state, the opposition Pakatan Rakyat’s (PR) 16-seat haul in the 71-seat state legislative assembly has effectively denied Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak a much needed referendum to confidently call for the 13th general elections this year.
The party adviser and parliamentary chief, Lim Kit Siang, remarked that PR’s win marks the biggest defeat faced by the BN’s Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud in his 30-year career as Sarawak chief minister, cementing the widely-held view that he is a liability to the ruling coalition at the federal level.
“This is the biggest setback for the Barisan Nasional. Sarawak is no longer the fixed deposit for the Barisan Nasional,” Lim senior told a news conference here tonight.
The two East Borneo states of Sarawak and Sabah account for 56 out of 222 seats in parliament, with the former taking the lion’s share at 31.
“This big strike forward for DAP and for Pakatan Rakyat Sarawak is a very important and revolutionary step for the [coming] general elections,” he added.
Kit Siang’s son, Guan Eng, said Sarawak had delivered a very strong message to the federal government through the ballot box.
“The message is clear. Sarawak wants an end to a one-party rule and a one-man rule. They want a two-party rule,” the DAP secretary-general told reporters.
“I hope the prime minister will heed this message by asking Taib Mahmud to step down now,” Guan Eng said, even as he noted the 74-year-old’s promise to step down within the next two to three years was “too long”.
DAP national chairman, Karpal Singh, who was also at the same news conference observed that resource-rich Sarawak had the potential to top Penang’s record 26 per cent economic growth.
“I think Sarawak can do more than Penang with its resources,” the veteran lawyer said, echoing his colleagues in saying that the change can only come if the Sarawak chief minister, sworn in for the seventh consecutive term following his win as Balingan representative, steps down.
Sarawak DAP’s Chong Chien Jen in turn drove home the point that the newly-concluded state election was “all about Sarawak choosing whether it wanted to continue with a corrupt government or change to a better, cleaner, more accountable government”.
“Not only to Taib, but to Najib … Sarawak wants change. They have had enough of the BN government and want to change to a cleaner government,” the Padungan winner said.
The DAP won 12 out of its 15 seats contested, while PKR took three. Their Islamist party, PAS, was wiped out in the race.
The BN swept 55 seats.