PBB Women wing refining and oiling its machinery in preparation for the upcoming state election

KUCHING: The Women Wing of Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) is refining and oiling its machinery in preparation for the upcoming Sarawak state election, particularly in identifying new voters and enhancing the knowledge and skills of its members.

Caption: PBB Women chief Fatimah Abdullah (left) says that the preparations for an election cannot be done at the last minute

Its chief Fatimah Abdullah said early preparation is important to ensure that the party machinery can carry out its responsibilities in an organised, structured and efficient manner, especially in facing the growing number of voters.

"Preparations for an election cannot be done at the last minute. They must be planned so that our Women's party machinery becomes one that is organised, structured and efficient in ensuring that the trust given to us is carried out well," she told a press conference after the movement's supreme council meeting at the party headquarters.

Fatimah, who is also the Women, Family, Early Childhood and Community Well-being Development Minister,  said various programmes previously carried out, such as 'Kamek Prihatin', 'Kitak Penting', 'Simpulan Kasih', 'Sarawak Kita Empun' and the 'Sarawakku Sayang' Programme, have served as platforms to reach out to the people.

She stressed that the programmes have also helped enhance the machinery's knowledge of Sarawak's progress and development under the Post Covid-19 Development Strategy 2030 (PCDS 2030).

She said the meeting also focused on strengthening the machinery's understanding and skills through a briefing on polling agents and counting agents (PACAs) and sharing sessions on election preparedness.

Fatimah added the upcoming state election requires a higher level of preparedness due to the increase in voters, including young people and those previously unregistered.

She therefore called upon the entire PBB Women's machinery to continue refining its structure and workings, assess the strength of each branch and sub-branch, identify new voters and strengthen ties with families and communities.

She also stressed that PBB Women stands firmly behind the leadership of PBB president and Premier Abang Johari Openg and is committed to ensuring that Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) secures a larger mandate than in the previous election.

She also emphasised that women's strengths, being meticulous, diligent, patient and close to families and communities, must be translated into building a machinery that is efficient, organised, knowledgeable and disciplined before, during and after the state election.

In a related development, Fatimah said PBB Women hopes more women will be given the opportunity to contest in the upcoming state election and become elected representatives, but candidate selection must be based on calibre, merit and winnability.