Victory for Pakatan lies in East Malaysia, say Pemuda PAS delegates

PETALING JAYA, Nov 21 — Pakatan Rakyat will not be able to take over Putrajaya so long as it continues to neglect the battleground states of Sabah and Sarawak, East Malaysian delegates at Pemuda PAS’ 54^th Muktamar, or annual meeting, said today.

Delegates from Sabah and Sarawak lamented that PAS, in particular, has not made much effort to make inroads in either state, as voters there continue to suffer from blatantly Semenanjung-centric policies implemented by the ruling Barisan Nasional.

Sabah delegate Haris Aumuddin said the results of the13th General Election last May clearly show that the federal opposition has not done nearly enough to win over support in Malaysia’s eastern states.

He said they have not capitalised on local sentiments, despite the fact that the ruling Barisan Nasional had only seen fit to seal less than 50 per cent of Sabah’s roads and that just 60 per cent of Sabahans have access to potable water supply, among other issues.

“If you look at the results, Umno and Barisan Nasional won 86 seats in Semenanjung and 47 seats in Sabah and Sarawak. Pakatan won 80 seats in Semenanjung, but only nine seats in Sabah and Sarawak.

“The formula to win an election is to get 50 per cent of the seats in Semenanjung and 50 per cent in Sabah and Sarawak. BN uses this formula, but Pakatan failed to do so,” he said, when debating the keynote address by Pemuda PAS chief Nasrudin Hassan.

Sarawak delegate Aizan Mohd Noor noted that PAS, and by extension, PR, must look beyond Semenanjung Malaysia when coming up with policies, and not limit itself to the same West Malaysian context that governs BN’s decision-making process.

“When you look at all the policies, they are too Semenanjung-centric. Take for example the Kalimah Allah... it must be seen in the larger context. Policies must consider voters in Sabah and Sarawak,” he said, without elaborating.

Haris stressed that it is high time that PAS, through its Pemuda wing, pay more attention to both Sabah and Sarawak and play a more substantial role in shaping the country’s political future.

“I urge Pemuda PAS to make their main focus on not just establishing a presence in Sabah, but to make Sabah the key for Pakatan Rakyat to take over Putrajaya... don’t neglect Sabah or Sarawak,” he said.

PAS saw its political fortunes diminish in last May’s national polls when it bagged 21 parliamentary seats, two less than what it won in the watershed 2008 General Election - when the opposition denied BN a two-thirds majority.

The Islamist party trailed behind PR partners DAP, which increased its parliamentary representation by 10 seats with a tally of 38, and PKR, which despite losing one seat, still managed a respectable 30 spots in Parliament.

PAS has never won a parliamentary or state seat in either Sabah or Sarawak.