Is Najib coming to declare open SUPP TDC?

Kuching (Dec 9, 2011): Will Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak be coming to declare open the Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP) triennial delegates conference tomorrow, in view of the crisis the party is experiencing now?

Asked by reporters after chairing the central committee meeting today, party president Tan Sri Dr George Chan said:"I have not heard that he is not coming. Definitely, he will come."

Party organising secretary Datuk Seri Peter Chin Fah Kui said:"Hopefully he will come."

But reporters from the local Chinese newspapers have confirmed from their sources in Kuala Lumpur that Najib, who is also the BN chairman, would not be coming "in view of the latest political development in SUPP".

However, there is no latest official confirmation on whether or not Najib would open the TDC.

Najib's itinerary faxed to the press on Dec 7 had stated that Najib would be accompanied by his wife to Kuching in the afternoon of Dec 10.

He would open the TDC at Pullman Hotel, after which he and his wife would return to KL.

It is also learnt that Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud is not coming to the TDC. Instead, he will be deputised by Housing Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Openg, who is also the PBB deputy president (11).

Other Sarawak BN component party leaders are also expected to attend.

SUPP to table major amendments to its constitution, limiting terms of office of office bearers

Kuching (Dec 9, 2011): Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) central committee held its last meeting today before a new one is elected this Sunday.

It was attended by 69 out of 126 members, sufficient to form a quorum, according to outgoing party president Tan Sri Dr George Chan.

Among the notable absentees were deputy secretary-general Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh and his supporters Dr Jerip Susil, Datuk Lee Kim Sin, Datuk Tiong Thai King and Jonical Rayong.

The major decisions reached at the CC meeting:

1.       Amendments to the party constitution, which limit the appointments of ministers, elected representatives and councillors from the party to the maximum to three terms. The amendments also limit the party’s office bearers for the party central, Youth, Women and branch levels to the maximum three terms. The amendments will be tabled at the triennial delegates conference for voting by the delegates. If the amendments are approved by the TDC and then the Registrar of Societies, they will take effect immediately.

2.       Formation of the Council of Elders to give, among others, advice to the party on any matter.

3.       Rectify any shortcomings at the election of office bearers at the branch level.

Dr Chan, speaking to reporters after chairing the CC  meeting at the party headquarters, said the ROS has given the party the greenlight to hold the TDC.

“The ROS has confirmed that what we (central election committee) did on complaints of irregularities by some branches, were correct. Therefore, we can proceed with the TDC,” he said, adding that the CC, being the second highest after the TDC, has sanctioned the decisions of the election committee on complaints of alleged irregularities.

“The CC was of the (legal) views that the decisions of the CEC were legally right and in line with the party constitution and the Societies Act,” he said.

Dr Chan said the problems cropped up because this was the first time that the party witnessed “contests” at the branch levels.

On threats by Wong, who is also the state Minister of Local Government and Community Development, and his supporters to boycott tomorrow’s TDC, Dr Chan said he hoped that Wong and other party leaders would come.

Wong, in a statement yesterday, had indicated that he and his supporters would boycott the TDC, claiming that the elections at the level were rigged and manipulated.

Wong and party organising secretary Datuk Peter Chin Fah Kui had both expressed their intention to take over from Dr Chan as the party’s president.

Chin, the federal Minister of Energy, Green Technology and Water, who was present at the press conference with Dr Chan, said:” I am very sad if the boycott threat is carried out by Soon Koh and his supporters.

“He (Wong) has aspired to be president, and he should not boycott the TDC and should consider the party election as a family matter.

“Nobody can ascertain who will be the next president. It is up to the central committee and the central working committee to decide. If the CC and CWC members elect him to be the president, then I will congratulate him, and if I am elected, then he should congratulate me,” Chin said.

He said if Wong decided to boycott the TDC, he would forfeit his right to be the next president.

“The choice is his,” Chin said.

On threat by Wong and his supporters that they would resign en bloc, Dr Chan said it would have some impact on the party.

“But the (elected) seats will remain with the party, and this is the traditions practised by the Barisan Nasional in the past,” he added.

Dr Chan declined to speculate whether Wong and his supporters would form a new party if they carried out the threat to resign from the party.

“Let’s come to that later,” he said. –Sematong Express

Wong Soon Koh and supporters to boycott SUPP TDC

 

We, Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh, Datuk Richard Riot anak Jaem, Datuk Tiong Thai King, Datuk Francis Harden anak Hollis, Datuk Lee Kim Shin, Dr. Jerip anak Susil, Encik Ranum anak Mina and Dr. Johnichal Rayong Ngipa together with all our delegates and supporters from various Branches have decided that we will not participate in the Triennial Delegates Conference (“TDC”) of SUPP due to claims of irregularities and manipulations which will prevent a free and fair election at the TDC.  We will not legitimize the TDC by our participation having regard to the complaints made by many members to the Registrar of Societies (“ROS”).

We also have regard that many of our grassroot supporters are emotionally charged by the reports of manipulation and irregularities in the Branch elections.  Many members from various Branches have called us to express their unhappiness and frustration and if nothing is done to rectify the wrong doings and irregularities, they will stage a big protest and demonstration during the TDC and also resign en bloc.  This will certainly portray a very bad image of our Party, especially in front of our invited distinguished guests from our component Barisan Nasional parties during the official opening of the TDC.  We will withdraw from the TDC to prevent any such untoward incidents.

We had requested that a Central Working Committee (“CWC”) be convened to deal with the complaints by branch members of irregularities in branch elections.  The Party President has refused to convene the CWC.

Instead, the Secretary General on his own and the Central Election Committee (“CEC”) have usurped the powers of the CWC by purporting to make decisions on the election irregularities.  Under the Party Constitution, neither the Secretary General nor the CEC has power to make such decisions. 

The branch members who have complained to ROS did so only because they have not been able to obtain redress from the CWC.  Their complaints to ROS were made as a last resort.  We will leave it to the ROS to carry out its investigation into their complaints.

However, it would be wrong for our team to participate and give legitimacy to an election which cannot be free or fair due to the claims of irregularities in the Party branch elections.  We will not be a party to any illegality which may invite serious action by the ROS.

We are of the view that the correct approach to take must be :-

            (1)       Postpone the TDC;

            (2)       CWC conduct a full investigation into all the complaints of    irregularities in Branch elections;

            (3)       Fresh elections to be held in respect of the affected                            branches;

            (4)       TDC to be held only after all the irregularities have been                    rectified.

We urge the Party President, Secretary General and the Chin-Teng faction to allow the complaints of irregularities to be resolved by the CWC before the TDC is held.  If they insist on holding the TDC without first resolving the complaints of irregularities pending before the ROS, then they must accept full responsibility for any action that may be taken by ROS due to any wrong doing which will affect the TDC.

We urge all our supporters and all fair-minded members of SUPP not to participate in the TDC unless and until all wrong-doings at Branch elections are redressed by the CWC.

PRESS  STATEMENT

We, Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh, Datuk Richard Riot anak Jaem, Datuk Tiong Thai King, Datuk Francis Harden anak Hollis, Datuk Lee Kim Shin, Dr. Jerip anak Susil, Encik Ranum anak Mina and Dr. Johnichal Rayong Ngipa hereby declare that we will not accept any offer of any post in the Party because of all the reports of irregularities in a number of Branch Triennial General Meetings and election of office-bearers and delegates.

            Dated this      8th      day  of  December  2011.

Wrong for a SUPP faction to identify itself with Taib?

Commentary
There are signs to show that a faction in SUPP wants to associate itself with Chief Minister Taib Mahmud. This faction is trying to emulate the steps taken by James Masing and his supporters when fighting for the control of PBDS before.
Masing was facing veteran politician Daniel Tajem, who was and still is, not in the good book of Taib.
What happened in PBDS, which was deregistered in 2004, was history and should be best forgotten.
There is no need for the SUPP faction to follow the steps taken by Masing and his supporters.
The Dayaks, in general, are politically weak and naive. They do not fight for their rights as strong as what the Chinese do. Hence, it is easy to control them.
But the Chinese are different. They are sophisticated lots. They are not easily influenced in politics. If they do not like certain policies of the government, they dare to voice out their opposition.
The urban Chinese, especially, have shown their opposition to certain Barisan Nasional policies by voting for the Opposition candidates in the past two state elections.
They see corruption and abuse of power committed by the BN.
The Chinese have shown a hatred towards Taib. In fact, Taib is among the reasons why the Chinese voted for the DAP and PKR in the last state elections. Just ask any Chinese in the streets, they will surely tell you of their feelings towards the chief minister.
SUPP was formed primarily for the Chinese. It is not that they no longer like the party anymore.  They see in the current leaders who are afraid to voice the discontentments of the community. They see in the leaders who are scared of Taib.
On the other hand, the DAP leaders dared to square off with Taib in the State Legislative Assembly. They dared to tell Taib off.
Hence, for the SUPP faction to identify itself with Taib is a political mistake. It is for this reason that another faction is going to win in the party election on 11th Dec. This other faction is aware of the feelings of the Chinese community at Taib, hence it decided to keep quiet on its relationship with Taib.

An oversight to allow West Malaysians to vote in Sarawak and Sabah, says law book editor

Kuching: An issue of constitutional importance was raised at the launch of a law book today in respect of soldiers and policemen from other states who are allowed to cast votes in Sarawak and Sabah as postal voters.

Tan Kee Heng, the editor of the Borneo Law Reports, said it might be an oversight on the part of the founding fathers of the two states to allow people from other states to cast their votes and elect local representations.

“Undeniably, in every general election, thousands of army and police personnel from Peninsular Malaysia who were stationed in the two states had been allowed to cast their votes for the election of the local representatives and regrettably, as of today, there is no provision in our Federal Constitution or any written law to guarantee this basic right of Sarawakians and Sabahans,” he said.

“It might be due to the oversight of our founding fathers in the formation of Malaysia 48 years ago to incorporate such right into our Federal Constitution, but just ask yourself and our parents or grandparents, do you think that it is the will of the people of these two states to give away, though partially, their voting right to fellow Malaysians imported from Malaya to chose their own representatives both in the state assembly and parliament?” Tan asked.

“Personally speaking, I do not for the moment, think so. Sadly, so far our politicians from these two Borneo states apparently have not been active in pursuing this matter of fundamental importance to us,” he said.

He said Sarawak and Sabah surely are equal partners with Peninsular Malaysia in the formation of Malaysia, and that no one can deny that these two Borneo states are major contributors in terms of financial resources.

“I think all will agree with me that without the contributions from Sarawak and Sabah, our nation Malaysia would not be where it is now,” he said.

He added the political support of the people from the two states is most crucial to determine who will form the next Federal Government in Putrajaya.

Tan said  the area of Constitutional Law will be included in Volume 2 of the Borneo Law Reports which will be published later.

Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Richard Malanjum, when asked by reporters after he launched the law report, said Tan’s statement surprised him.

“I have to look at it, and I am sure he knows what he is talking about,” he said of Tan.

Malanjum declined to comment further when asked what would be a legal remedy, in the absence of any specific law, to bar the soldiers and police personnel from other states from casting their votes during elections in Sarawak and Sabah.

 ENDS