I will decide when to call it a day — Masing
KUCHING: Parti Rakyat Sarawak ( PRS) president Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Masing says he himself will decide when to quit his post as president of the party.
He acknowledged that his time “is not quite that long” and he would have to decide when to call it a day.
“In fact my time (as president) is not quite that long, I will think for myself when to quit ... but I tell you one thing for sure is that I will not let voters kick me out, and I don’t want to become president (of PRS) on a wheelchair,” Masing told reporters at the party’s headquarters at Jalan Pending here yesterday.
Foremost, he said, he had to make sure that the party had ‘the correct group’ to continue the spirit and interest of the party.
He said PRS had survived because its members shared a common spirit, interest and determination to make it a strong party.
“One thing we must understand is that PRS survives not because of money as we are not a rich party, but we survive because we (members) are determined in our spirit and that we have a common interest, and that is very important,” the deputy chief minister pointed out.
He said it would be a suicide move for PRS to use money politics to gain support, adding: “As long as I’m the president I am very serious in discouraging money politics in the party.”
Stressing that the demise of Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak ( PBDS) was due to money politics, he said even without a ‘godfather’ PRS was able to survive.
Asked whether there was money politics during the party’s recent triennial delegates conference (TDC), Masing, whois also Minister of Infrastructure Development and Transportation, replied that he was unaware of it.
He was glad to note that several young professionals were voted into the top posts during the TDC, which he said would strengthen the party.
On the contest for the top posts in the party, he said it was a wise move to allow young professionals to express their views and choose who they wanted to lead the party based on meritocracy.
“To disallow contests in the party is not a good move because young people are denied the opportunity to go up and this will lead to them go sideways which is dangerous,” Masing asserted.
Winning the TDC did not mean winning the election, he stressed, pointing out that it “is a totally different ball game”.
Masing yesterday witnessed the signing of appointment letters as principal office- bearers by five Supreme Council members of the party.
They are Batang Ai assemblyman Malcolm Mussen Lamoh (treasurer general), Datuk Wilfred Nissom (information chief), Janang Bungsu (deputy secretary general), Edwin Banta (deputy treasurer general) and Tamin assemblyman Christopher Gira (deputy information chief).
Julau MP Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum, who was appointed secretary general, was not present as he was attending the parliamentary sitting.
As president, Masing said he had the authority to appoint 10 Supreme Council members. With the six already appointed, he would appoint four more in a week or two.