No BN direct candidates in GE14 — Abang Johari
KUCHING: There will be no fielding of Barisan Nasional (BN) direct candidates in the coming 14th general election (GE14).
This was revealed by Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg when asked to comment if BN direct candidates would get to contest in the looming polls just like in the last state election which proved to be effective.
He explained the reason behind was that the upcoming election involved all states in Malaysia and not just Sarawak alone.
“This is a parliamentary election and all (contesting) candidates are from each component party unlike the state election. In Peninsular Malaysia, they also don’t have any BN direct candidates,” he told reporters when met after declaring open the Muara Sungai Kudei Bridge at Kampung Kudei here yesterday.
Also present at the opening of the RM738,093 steel bridge was Datuk Bandar of Kuching North City Commission Datuk Abang Abdul Wahap Abang Julai.
Upon confirming this, Abang Johari was then asked if that meant that there would be no BN direct candidate contesting in Saratok parliamentary constituency, to which he replied: “At the moment, no.”
“This is because you don’t only confine to Sarawak as it (14th general election) also applies to Peninsular Malaysia and also to Sabah,” he reiterated.
But when asked if he would be the one approving Sarawak BN’s candidates to contest in the election, the state BN chairman said, “No...not absolute lah” and declined to comment further on whether he had finalised his list of candidates.
Abang Johari’s latest revelation on BN not fielding any direct candidates meant that Saratok MP Tan Sri William Mawan Ikom, who is currently partyless, may not be defending his seat in the forthcoming general election.
However, in January, the senior politician had claimed that he was already a member of a BN component party and would be announcing this at an appropriate time.
In the last 13th general election, Mawan, then contesting as a Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) candidate, clinched a win for BN when he defeated Ali Biju of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and Independent candidate Datuk Abang Rosli Abang Paleng with a majority of 2,081 votes.
A fallout with SPDP led him to join Parti Tenaga Rakyat Sarawak (Teras) in 2014 but as the party was not recognised as a BN component party, he had to defend his state seat of Pakan as a BN direct candidate in the 11th state election in 2016 where he won by a slim majority of 426 votes.