By Ang Ngan Toh
May 15, 11 | Malaysiakini

Sarawak National Party (Snap) has formed a four-member committee to head preliminary discussions with the DAP on the merger proposal.

Announcing this today, Snap secretary-general Stanley Jugol said the party wants to know “what the DAP actually wants” in black and white.

“The party’s central executive committee will discuss the report to be submitted by the committee later,” he told Malaysiakini when contacted today.

The CEC would then make a decision after studying the report, he added.

The committee, formed by the CEC at its meeting yesterday, is headed by the party’s vice-presidents Augustine Liom and vice-president Johnny Wong, with CEC member Johari Bujang and Youth chief Dayrell Walter Entrie as members.

Meanwhile, Snap deputy secretary-general Paul Kadang said it has been suggested that a Snap-DAP collaboration was a better option for Snap as opposed to a merger with DAP as mooted by DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang.

“The collaboration could be in the form of having an electoral pact with the DAP and other political activities,” he said.

Kadang said the CEC also discussed the possibilities of collaborating with parties not in the Opposition Pakatan Rakyat coalition, especially in the Dayak-majority areas.

The CEC meeting, chaired by party president Edwin Dundang, also discussed the party’s performance in the state elections and its relationship with PKR.

Lim, soon after the April 16 state election that saw DAP win 12 out of the 15 seats it contested, had suggested that DAP and Snap merge in the interest of the Pakatan pact in Sarawak.

The veteran politician also made the assurance that such a merger would not be detrimental to either of DAP’s Pakatan partners, PAS and PKR.

If Snap leaders are against the proposal, any such discussions on the merger would be discontinued, Lim had added.

Jugol said that the views of Snap members, however, would also need to be sought first before any move to merge the party with the DAP.

“We have to get their views, as a merger means dissolution of the party,” he quoted as saying.

“Do they really want the party to be dissolved?” he asked .

Dissolve to merge

Jugol stressed that that it would be difficult for Snap to merge with the DAP for ‘historical’ reasons and the sentiments of Snap members.

“If you want to merge, both Snap and DAP have to be dissolved so we can form a new party,” he explained, and asked whether DAP members would like to see their party dissolved.

He also stated that the CEC members would have to air their views before bringing up the matter to the party members.

Jugol said if the merger proposal did not materialise, Snap was willing to work together with the DAP.

“Working together is easier done than merging,” and this could happen in many ways, he said, adding that there was nothing to stop the two parties from working together as both were in the Opposition.

Although in the recent state polls DAP and Snap did not clash in any of the seats they contested, the latter did go head-to-head against PKR in 25 seats that also saw BN and Independent candidates being fielded.

PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim (above) has stated that any move to merge Snap and DAP would have to be discussed at the level of the Pakatan Rakyat leadership council.

“We want to know the reasons for the merger as various allegations have been made against Snap during the campaigning period for the state elections,” said the Opposition leader.