CM confident Chinese unity can sway urban votes to BN
KUCHING: Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg is positive that the policies implemented by the state Barisan Nasional ( BN) which have been accepted by the people especially the Chinese will sway their support back to BN in the 14th General Election (GE14) and possibly increase the number of Chinese majority urban seats it won in the last election by two or three seats.
He said this in an exclusive interview on TV3’s Mandat programme on Thursday night in which he expressed confidence in the state BN line-up of candidates which comprised experienced and new faces.
“We have 31 parliamentary seats and BN Sarawak fielded 15 new faces this time with six new faces from PBB ( Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Sarawak). In the past, we secured 25 seats.
“What’s needed is the teamwork between the old and the new where the experienced ones can guide the new candidates. We want to bring in the new ones and especially those highly educated to help Sarawak head towards digitalisation,” he added.
On the challenges of facing the Democratic Action Party ( DAP) in urban seats particularly in Bandar Kuching constituency in which state DAP chairman Chong Chieng Jen defeated BN- Sarawak United People’s Party ( SUPP) candidate in Bandar Kuching with a 19,642 majority in the last election, Abang Johari admitted that disunity among the Chinese community was a weakness that gave strength to the opposition.
“There are internal problems and conflicts or misunderstanding among Chinese community leaders but I have tried to settle the problem. Hopefully, with them ( UPP and SUPP) together as one team now, their unity will give us the advantage,” he said.
Observing that the Chinese are rational and pragmatic he believed they would be attracted by the fair policies of the state government notably the recognition of the Unified Examination Certificate ( UEC), intake of UEC holders into the civil sector provided that they retake history and Bahasa Malaysia subjects and education assistance for Chinese school with RM7 million already allocated this year.
“I think they can see that our policies are fair and we must treat them fairly. So I feel they will realise and convince the Chinese people, which is also why we do not allow race politics that are extreme.”
On the acceptance of Peninsularbased parties in Sarawak, Abang Johari said Sarawak has its unique culture and it will hard for outside political parties to build their base or win the seats because Sarawakians will choose local parties who know the needs of the state better.
On his view in fostering a good relationship between state and federal government for greater good of a state, Abang Johari said Malaysia is like a family with many children in which the father must take good care and ensure every child is comfortable.
On the setting up of TV Sarawak, a television network exclusively for Sarawak, he said there was a plan but a study on its feasibility is still being done so it was too early to talk about this.
“We want to thank the federal government for approving a digital broadcast licence to us and we will reveal more of the plan in due time. The creative industry is growing and we must provide a platform for our younger generation to perform and showcase their talents and develop their potentials,” he said.