‘PBK’s women candidates proof it prioritises equal rights’
A quick glance at five faces featured on billboards here may make you think they are beauty product ambassadors. But on closer scrutiny, they are actually five women candidates of a party contesting the 12th Sarawak Election.
The billboards, found at main roads here, feature Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) candidates Priscilla Lau, who is contesting the Bukit Assek stat seat, Jane Lau Sing Yee (Dudong), Michelle Ling Shyan Mih (Bawang Assan), Tiew Yen Huong (Pelawan) and Olivia Lim Wen Sia (Nangka).
With house-to-house campaigns not allowed under the state election’s standard operating procedures, parties were resorting to huge billboards to show off their candidates.
Some people have stopped to take selfies with pictures of the candidates, who PBK is counting on to produce some upsets in the Sibu constituency.
Priscilla Lau, 52, and Ling, 25, are lawyers; Jane Lau, 36, is a traditional Chinese physician; Tiew, 51, is a realtor; and Lim, 24, is a personal assistant.
They are among the 12 women candidates fielded by PBK, which is contesting 73 out of the 82 state seats.
PBK president Voon Lee Shan said the move in fielding many women candidates is proof that the party prioritised equal rights for women in politics.
“The party’s stand is that women should be treated equally as men,” he said.
“Allowing them to contest doesn’t mean we have downgraded the capabilities of men, but it empowers women, as they come from various professions and are highly educated.”
Based on the Election Commission’s data issued on Monday, 349 candidates are contesting the state election, with 45, or 12.9 per cent, of them being women.
PBK also held the distinction of fielding the two youngest candidates, with Lim and Cherishe Ng Phuay Hui, both 24, contesting Nangka and Batu Lintang, respectively.