What's next for SUPP and SPDP?

By Simon Peter

SIBU, May 22, 2014: Ask anyone in Sibu about the "mass exodus" of SUPP members into a year-old Parti Tenaga Rakyat Sarawak (Teras), they would shake their heads.

"They just follow their leader (Wong Soon Koh)...we don't know whether what they do is right or wrong, they just follow," said a reporter with a Sibu-based Chinese newspaper.

Indeed, the situation is confusion, and to some extent, mind-boggling.

Why not? We do not know for sure whether they are also resigning from SUPP or are merely Soon Koh's followers, but are still with SUPP.

Whatever it is, they have caused considerable damage to SUPP Sibu branch, politically. Among those who are Soon Koh's followers is Sibu Municipal Council (SMC) chairman Tiong Thai King.

Even SUPP secretary-general Sim Kui Hian has admitted that the departure of Soon Koh and his supporters into Parti Teras has left "a huge vacuum" in the Sibu branch.

With the departure of Soon Koh into Parti Teras, SUPP is forced to appoint Sibu branch vice chairman Chieng Buong Toon to lead the remaining Sibu branch committee members with immediate effect.

The party has decided with the appointment, rather than leaving the branch without a leader.

Chieng has been tasked to supervise the party’s affairs in the branch. He is also authorised to take possession of all property and effects belonging to the branch.

Chieng can also convene meetings and make related decisions pertaining to the Sibu branch business and activities together with the remaining committee members, according to SUPP secretary general Sim Kui Hian.

After Soon Koh had left, many SUPP leaders and members in the branch had called on the party headquarters to express their anguish over the abrupt departure of their former chairman.

“They conveyed their loyal support to SUPP, the oldest political party in the state, and that they do not wish to see a vacuum in SUPP Sibu.

“They want to see SUPP fully functional in terms of the party’s normal operations and services to the people of Sibu continue unabated," Sim said.

It is not just the Sibu branch that is being paralysed by the loss of its leaders and members.

The party itself is also in great political pain, not only losing its members but also the elected representatives.

This is the result of a prolong leadership crisis that did not want to go away.

When settlement fails, the natural choice is to leave and join other political organisation.

That is what Soon Koh and his supporters did.

Apart from Soon Koh, who is also the State Assemblyman for Bawang Assan, the others are Jerip Susil (Bengoh), Ranum Mina (Opar) and Johnical Rayong Ngipa.

However, they are still with the Barisan Nasional.

According to Soon Koh, they have left SUPP, but not the Barisan and therefore their positions and status in BN remained the same.

Soon Koh, Jerip, Rayong and Ranum are among 11 elected representatives who have joined Parti Teras, along with former Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) president William Mawan.

Mawan himself left SPDP because of what he called  certain party leaders "elbowing" him out.

Telling other component parties why he and other elected representatives were leaving SUPP and SPDP, he said:“You must understand that we have no other options. We cannot continue to serve the people effectively if we are continuously disrupted.

"Our decision to join Parti Teras on May 15 was made out of necessity. We could not find other options to solve the long bickering and tussle in SPDP and SUPP. We tried to compromise, to give way, but nothing seemed to work.”

Some people inside and outside Sarawak are closely observing whether the crises in SUPP and SPDP would have major repercussions on the political situation in Sarawak.

As of now, the crises are being confined to the two parties.

People are watching how the newly minted Chief Minister and State BN chairman Adenan Satem is handling the situation and making sure that it does not cause instability to the State BN.

Adenan is an experienced hand in facing tough political challenges. He has the experience of facing the infamous Ming Court Affair of 1987 to rely upon should the State BN's position is threatened.

As of now, Adenan has not been saying anything yet, except to thank those elected representatives who have left SUPP and SPDP for their continued support to his leadership and State BN.

But of course, Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) is not happy with these elected representatives for joining Parti Teras.

It comes out of fears -  Parti Teras suddenly has more elected representatives than what PRS has and secondly, it assumes that Parti Teras would contest in Pelagus, the seat PRS lost to former Sarawak Workers' Party deputy president George Lagong in the 2011 state election.

Lagong, who stood as an Independent, defeated PRS candidate in Pelagus, and PRS has claimed that it has every right to field its candidate to contest using BN's symbol in the coming State election.

So those are the fears of PRS for objecting to Parti Teras joining the BN.

Whatever is the case, there is nothing for the people to worry about. If there are people who are getting worried, it is those elected representatives who are staying put in SUPP and SPDP.

SUPP has two state assemblymen while SPDP has two members of parliament.