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Malaysian opposition at odds ahead of polls
Straits Times - March 19, 2011
Teo Cheng Wee, Kuala Lumpur – With just weeks to go before an important state election is likely to be called in Sarawak, the fortunes of the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) alliance have taken a hit even before the race has started.
Two parties in particular – Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and the Sarawak National Party (Snap) – have been clashing over seats publicly in a fierce tussle.
Sarawak's state assembly is expected to be dissolved anytime now in preparation for the election, which many are expecting to take place next month.
Chief Minister Taib Mahmud stoked speculation yesterday when he told reporters to "wait one more day". They had asked him to comment on speculation about the dissolution of the state assembly, Bernama reported.
Once the assembly is dissolved, the clock will start ticking for the four-party Sarawak PR alliance to finalize seat allocations.
Both PKR and Snap are eyeing the ethnic Dayak and mixed seats, which together make up about half of the 71 seats in the state legislature. Dayaks are the majority race in Sarawak.
The other two parties are not involved in the altercation. The Chinese-based Democratic Action Party (DAP) will contest the Chinese-majority areas, while Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) – which has a minimal presence in Sarawak – will contest a symbolic handful of seats at most.
Snap, being a Dayak-based party, wanted to lay claim to all Dayak seats. The multiracial PKR, however, is having none of it.
PKR Sarawak treasurer Michael Teo pointed out that Snap was still finding its feet. It was deregistered by the Registrar of Societies in 2002 after a protracted leadership crisis, and got the appeal court to overturn this decision last June.
"They only started becoming more active then, whereas we have been working the ground for years," he said.
But Snap's edge lies in its familiarity to the natives. Formed in 1961 by the first chief minister of Sarawak, the once-formidable party was part of the Barisan Nasional (BN) until it was expelled in 2004. Rural folk are said to be more familiar with Snap's brand name.
It was seen as a coup of sorts when PR first welcomed it into its fold in Sarawak last year, but the alliance has become increasingly uneasy. Earlier this year, Snap reportedly said that it was willing to network with other opposition parties, including those formed by former PKR leaders.
Both sides have laid bare their intentions about the upcoming election through the media in recent weeks. PKR has said that it wanted to contest 52 seats, leaving only a handful for Snap.
But Snap baulked at the idea and has threatened to quit the alliance. On Tuesday, it issued a statement saying that it wanted to contest 40 seats and named candidates for 16 of them.
The statement hit out at PKR's ambition and criticized its track record, saying that it has won only one state seat in five general and state elections since 1999. It also pointed out that PKR has had little impact in native-majority areas.
"Such presumptuousness on the part of PKR is unwarranted," said Snap president Edwin Dundang.
The bitter quarrels are now leading cynics in PKR to say that Snap is being used by BN and anti-PKR elements to disrupt Pakatan's campaign.
Insiders say that PR is still trying to smooth things over. Behind-the-scenes discussions are understood to be taking place.
If Snap pulls out and contests independently, the ensuing three-cornered fights would benefit BN the most. This is a situation PR desperately wants to avoid, one PKR insider said.
"It would really reduce the chances of Pakatan's hopes of denying BN a two-thirds majority in the state assembly," said political analyst Ong Kian Ming.
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