KUCHING: There is no place for Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM) in Barisan Nasional (BN) especially for the upcoming 15th general election (GE15), according to experts.
The New Sarawak Tribune spoke with experts and political analysts regarding UMNO secretary-general Ahmad Maslan’s recent question about where Larry Sng would run if PBM were to join BN.
Socio-political analyst at Universiti Malaya (UM), Associate Prof Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi opined that it would be difficult for the Julau MP to contest in another parliamentary constituency as Julau is his stronghold.
“Despite the fact that Julau is now considered a high-risk area to win, his chances of acceptance remain high due to his extensive knowledge of the area.
“However, keep in mind that Sng defeated Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) due to his opponents’ disunity and internal sabotage, which means he was able to secure the seat due to PRS’ weakness at the time,” Awang Azman explained.
PBM will not be accepted into BN, he added, due to an agreement with Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) not to oppose each other.
“Why does BN need to support PBM, which has no chance of winning any Sarawak seats?
“It is preferable for BN to continue working with GPS, which is almost certain to win at least 20 parliamentary seats in the 15th general election and support the formation of a new government.”
Meanwhile, political analyst at Universiti Malaysia Sabah Dr Lee Kuok Tiung pointed out that in the country’s democracy system, Sng may contest in any seat but it will not be under GPS or BN.
“I am convinced that both Perikatan Nasional (PN) and BN would not risk the opportunity to work with GPS to form the next federal government after GE15 just because of one or two individuals.
“Reading between the lines, UMNO or BN may have revealed the answer to whether or not PBM should be accepted into BN,” he said, while predicting a negative outcome.
Lee added that GPS performed solidly and convincingly in the Sarawak Election, and the party will stick with the current component parties which will be able pull better results.
Meanwhile, Dr James Chin, a professor at the Asia’ Institute of Tasmania, stated that if PBM joins BN before GE15, a negotiation between Sng and GPS is to be expected.
“Sng will attempt to persuade GPS to allow BN to contest a seat in Sarawak.
“Because he has almost no chance of winning a seat in Peninsular Malaysia, he will try his hardest to contest in Sarawak.”
