Sarawak DAP said the decision made by the state PKR today to negotiate with PAS in some seats for the coming Sarawak election flies against the agreement reached with the PKR national leadership.

On Monday, PKR president Dr Wan Azizah confirmed that PAS is not part of the opposition coalition and that PKR would not clash with DAP on any seat in the state election that is to be held on May 7.

Earlier today, Sarawak PKR announced that it would be contesting 40 seats, after having negotiated for 49 seats.

However, in an unexpected turn of events later in the day, Sarawak PKR vetoed the seat negotiation consensus arrived at the national level among Pakatan Harapan allies.

It went on to reverse its initial decision to stand in 40 seats in the May 7 Sarawak state election.

It is now not clear as to how many seats it may clash with the state DAP as both parties are yet to formally announce the specific seats or the names of the candidates each would be fielding. DAP has said it would announce its candidates on April 20.

Earlier today, the state DAP announced that it would be contesting 29 seats, 15 of which are Dayak majority seats. One seat will be a Malay majority seat. The party said it has ceded six seats to PKR, bringing the number down from the 35 seats it initially wanted to contest.

“As far as we are concerned, we will go full gear in our campaign for these 29 seats. After the negotiations with Wan Azizah, seats have been completed and setttled,” state DAP leader Chong Chieng Jen told reporters in Kuching today.

“Two days ago Wan Azizah said the seat negotiations have been completed and settled. We give and take. We gave out some, we maintained some seats. It the end we settled for 29. As you all know, all this while, we wanted 30 to 35 (seats). We settled for 29 seats, which is fair enough,” Chong said.

State PKR leader Baru Bian (photo) in a statement this afternoon said state party leaders were unable to accept the national decision as far as the allocation of seats was concerned.

“Unfortunately what has been communicated to us at this stage, pertaining to the allocation of seats, is not in line with what had been decided at state level.

“For the sake of fairness to our local members, and in order to uphold the integrity of MPN Sarawak with regard to our duty and undertaking to our potential candidates, we have made the decision to exercise our veto powers reserved at the outset,” Baru said.

DAP in the just dissolved state assembly held 12 seats, while PKR had three. Both opposition components have engaged in protracted negoations, meeting as many as four times on the seat allocations for the coming election.

‘No talks at all with PAS’

Asked for the state DAP’s position on PAS constesting in Sarawak, Chong said: “We are not contesting those areas that PAS wants to contest. If PAS wants to come and contest in Kota Sentosa, it can go ahead. We are not going to talk to them or tell them to stop. We have no talks at all with PAS.”

Chong, the outgoing assemblyperson for Kota Sentosa, said the seat negotiations have been tough and he pointed to possible internal disagreements within PKR.

“I know PKR has two factions. There is the Azmin (Ali) faction and the Wan Azizah faction.

“That is why these negotiations have been very difficult for us. We had to go through two factions. And finally, it was through Azmin personally that the seats were settled. We even signed on it.”

3c09f8a56f7d2b9530f7c5946f790f17Azmin (photo) is PKR’s deputy president and Selangor’s menteri besar.

Chong added that PKR’s vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar was also a party to the agreement.

Asked how DAP would respond if there were clashes over the seats, resulting in three-cornered fights in the Sarawak election, Chong replied: “We’ll see how it goes.

“However, I don’t think it is good to agree in a meeting, then after the meeting, two days later, you have another dream and you say, ‘Oh, I don’t agree, I want another thing.’ I don’t think that’s how a party should behave.

“I just want to stick to what has been officially agreed with the Azmin faction and with the Wan Azizah faction. Now, suddenly, there is a third force coming out from PKR.

“On our part, we will hold on to the agreement and we hope PKR will respect what has been agreed. If you can’t even hold to something that have agreed on at the meeting, as announced by your party president, how can you expect the people to have trust in you?”

The state PKR, which held three seats in just dissolved state assembly, has said the state DAP was on a “one-sided warpath” since seat negotiations began and that representatives from its Pakatan Harapan coalition partner had launched “unwarranted and peevish” attacks on PKR leaders.

In February, Baru said P

Sarawak DAP said the decision made by the state PKR today to negotiate with PAS in some seats for the coming Sarawak election flies against the agreement reached with the PKR national leadership.

On Monday, PKR president Dr Wan Azizah confirmed that PAS is not part of the opposition coalition and that PKR would not clash with DAP on any seat in the state election that is to be held on May 7.

Earlier today, Sarawak PKR announced that it would be contesting 40 seats, after having negotiated for 49 seats.

However, in an unexpected turn of events later in the day, Sarawak PKR vetoed the seat negotiation consensus arrived at the national level among Pakatan Harapan allies.

It went on to reverse its initial decision to stand in 40 seats in the May 7 Sarawak state election.

It is now not clear as to how many seats it may clash with the state DAP as both parties are yet to formally announce the specific seats or the names of the candidates each would be fielding. DAP has said it would announce its candidates on April 20.

Earlier today, the state DAP announced that it would be contesting 29 seats, 15 of which are Dayak majority seats. One seat will be a Malay majority seat. The party said it has ceded six seats to PKR, bringing the number down from the 35 seats it initially wanted to contest.

“As far as we are concerned, we will go full gear in our campaign for these 29 seats. After the negotiations with Wan Azizah, seats have been completed and setttled,” state DAP leader Chong Chieng Jen told reporters in Kuching today.

“Two days ago Wan Azizah said the seat negotiations have been completed and settled. We give and take. We gave out some, we maintained some seats. It the end we settled for 29. As you all know, all this while, we wanted 30 to 35 (seats). We settled for 29 seats, which is fair enough,” Chong said.

State PKR leader Baru Bian (photo) in a statement this afternoon said state party leaders were unable to accept the national decision as far as the allocation of seats was concerned.

“Unfortunately what has been communicated to us at this stage, pertaining to the allocation of seats, is not in line with what had been decided at state level.

“For the sake of fairness to our local members, and in order to uphold the integrity of MPN Sarawak with regard to our duty and undertaking to our potential candidates, we have made the decision to exercise our veto powers reserved at the outset,” Baru said.

DAP in the just dissolved state assembly held 12 seats, while PKR had three. Both opposition components have engaged in protracted negoations, meeting as many as four times on the seat allocations for the coming election.

‘No talks at all with PAS’

Asked for the state DAP’s position on PAS constesting in Sarawak, Chong said: “We are not contesting those areas that PAS wants to contest. If PAS wants to come and contest in Kota Sentosa, it can go ahead. We are not going to talk to them or tell them to stop. We have no talks at all with PAS.”

Chong, the outgoing assemblyperson for Kota Sentosa, said the seat negotiations have been tough and he pointed to possible internal disagreements within PKR.

“I know PKR has two factions. There is the Azmin (Ali) faction and the Wan Azizah faction.

“That is why these negotiations have been very difficult for us. We had to go through two factions. And finally, it was through Azmin personally that the seats were settled. We even signed on it.”

3c09f8a56f7d2b9530f7c5946f790f17Azmin (photo) is PKR’s deputy president and Selangor’s menteri besar.

Chong added that PKR’s vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar was also a party to the agreement.

Asked how DAP would respond if there were clashes over the seats, resulting in three-cornered fights in the Sarawak election, Chong replied: “We’ll see how it goes.

“However, I don’t think it is good to agree in a meeting, then after the meeting, two days later, you have another dream and you say, ‘Oh, I don’t agree, I want another thing.’ I don’t think that’s how a party should behave.

“I just want to stick to what has been officially agreed with the Azmin faction and with the Wan Azizah faction. Now, suddenly, there is a third force coming out from PKR.

“On our part, we will hold on to the agreement and we hope PKR will respect what has been agreed. If you can’t even hold to something that have agreed on at the meeting, as announced by your party president, how can you expect the people to have trust in you?”

The state PKR, which held three seats in just dissolved state assembly, has said the state DAP was on a “one-sided warpath” since seat negotiations began and that representatives from its Pakatan Harapan coalition partner had launched “unwarranted and peevish” attacks on PKR leaders.

In February, Baru said PKR’s leaders were browbeaten by their larger partner.

Baru had said then: “I wish to ask Chong Chien Jen to rein in his members, and stop them from making incendiary and rash statements about our members and our leaders in West Malaysia.

“These irrational statements by his members are detrimental to the image of the opposition in the eyes of the public and I am concerned that they may reflect negatively on his role as leader of the party.”

-Malaysiakini April 15,2016

KR’s leaders were browbeaten by their larger partner.

Baru had said then: “I wish to ask Chong Chien Jen to rein in his members, and stop them from making incendiary and rash statements about our members and our leaders in West Malaysia.

“These irrational statements by his members are detrimental to the image of the opposition in the eyes of the public and I am concerned that they may reflect negatively on his role as leader of the party.”

-Malaysiakini April 15,2016