Sarawak DAP chief secures second highest number of votes in DAP's CEC election

KUCHING, March 16, 2025: Sarawak DAP chief Chong Chieng Jen garnered the second highest number of votes in the election for the 2025-2028 central executive committee of the DAP in Petaling Jaya today.

The Stampin Member of Parliament garnered 2,631 votes, second after Damansara Member of Parliament Govind Singh Deo, who secured 2,785 votes.

Deputy Speaker of Parliament Alice Lau, who is also Lanang Member of Parliament, came in 16^th position, obtaining 2,165 votes.

Bandar Kuching Member of Parliament,Dr Kelvin Yii, however, failed to get elected into the 30-member CEC.

Chong, who is also Padungan State Assemblyman, was appointed as one of the five DAP vice chairmen.

The others are Teo Nie Ching, Ng Suee Lim, Syahredzan Johan and J Arul Kumar

Govind, who is also the Digital Minister, is the new chairman, taking over from former Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng, who is now made an adviser.

The deputy chairman is the Minister of Housing and Local Government Nga Kor Ming while Transport Minister Loke Siew Fook remains as the secretary-general.

Alice is made the assistant international secretary while the international secretary is Kasthuri Patto.

 

PBK wants GPS government to ban Malayan parties from contesting in Sarawak

 

By Henry Lee

KUCHING: Parti Bumi Kenyalang today urged the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) government to amend the Sarawak Constitution to prohibit or to bar Malayan political parties from fielding candidates in the state and parliamentary elections in the state.

Its president Voon Lee Shan (picture) said the elections should be made a state affairs and no political parties from Malaya should interfere with Sarawak elections directly or indirectly.

“May a motion be passed in the coming sitting of the Sarawak Legislative Assembly to remind the people of Sarawak that it was not in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 to allow political parties from Malaya to enter and participate in the political affairs of Sarawak,” Voon said in a statement.

He said DAP was one of the earliest Malayan political parties to set foot in Sarawak which was brought in by a few former members of Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) in the 1970s.

He said other  political parties from Malaya including PKR, and PAS also entered Sarawak to contest seats in Sarawak.

Voon, a former DAP’s State Assemblyman for Batu Lintang, explained that when Malaysia was formed, it was never the intention of the Sarawakians to invite or to have political parties from Malaya to come and contest for state or parliament seats.

 It was agreed that seats for Sarawak in parliament are for Sarawak and never been meant to be contested or taken away by political parties from Malaya, adding that at the moment Sarawak is allocated with 31 seats while Sabah, 25 seats.

“If a seat is won by a political party like DAP or PKR, then this seat is taken away from Sarawak for a political party from Malaya. 

“This should not be accepted. The taking away of seats from Sarawak has diminished the bargaining power of Sarawak in parliament. 

“The voice of Sarawak was hardly heard because Malaya controls parliament,” Voon,  a senior lawyer, said, noting that at the moment Malayan political parties are also contesting state seats in Sarawak and this should be stopped now.