KUCHING, May 3 — Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate for Bandar Kuching, Kho Teck Wan, wants Sarawakians to reject all peninsula-based parties and exert their state’s position as an equal partner in the formation of Malaysia.

The election greenhorn promises to table a Bill in Parliament, if she wins the May 9 vote, to increase the number of parliamentary seats for Sarawak and Sabah in line with the safeguards provided by the Malaysia Agreement 1963.

"For Sarawak to be stronger, we must fight for more parliamentary seats in accordance with the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement.

"The Sarawak Barisan Nasional government can make this happen. The Opposition cannot promise you this because the very person that reduced our voice in parliament is the same person leading them today,” the 42-year-old computer network security expert told a news conference here today.

Kho said the Malaysia Agreement states that Sarawak, Sabah and Singapore control more than 33 per cent of the total number of parliamentary seats to prevent the states in the peninsula from having the two-thirds majority to amend the Malaysian Constitution.

But Kho said Sarawak, which has 31 parliamentary seats, and Sabah, 25, now accounted for only 25 per cent of the 222 seats in parliament as Singapore was ejected from Malaysia in 1965.

Kho blamed Pakatan Harapan chairman Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad for allegedly creating the imbalance when he was the prime minister to strengthen Umno’s position.

The mother of four said no candidates of peninsula-based parties can fully defend the state’s interests as they were all answerable to their masters in the peninsula.

"Sarawak for Sarawakians. We have no place for the peninsula’s chauvinistic ideologies and risk breaking our unity and harmony in Sarawak,” she added.

Kho, who is from the Sarawak United People’s Party, will be facing DAP’s Kelvin Yii, who is also a new candidate.