KUCHING, Aug 27 — Selangau MP Baru Bian today urged his Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) to recruit more Malays for a more balanced racial representation.
He added that the party needs to project a multiracial image to appeal to voters and better reflect the ethnic diversity in Sarawak.
“Our party leaders must seriously look at this if we are to be an effective and viable alternative to GPS,” he said in his speech at the PSB third triennial delegates conference here.
GPS refers to the ruling Gabungan Parti Sarawak coalition.
“Our outreach programmes must be tailored to welcome more members of different ethnicities so that we will grow our numbers to reflect the diverse demographic of Sarawak,” added Baru who is also Ba’Kelalan assemblyman.
He also urged his party leadership to actively reach out to voters in the under-30 age group.
“I cannot overstate the importance of our youth when it comes to voting. With the implementation of Undi18 and automatic voter registration, there will be an extra 675,077 voters when we go to the polls for GE15.
“Of these, 20.9 per cent are aged 18-20 and 45.2 per cent are between 21-29,” he said, adding the under-30 group makes up some 66 per cent of voters in Sarawak.
He said those in this age bracket should be involved in the electoral process as the choices made will affect their future.
“They must be encouraged to take ownership of, and responsibility for the governance of the country,” Baru said.
He also called on the party to focus on women voters, claiming they are “more likely to turn up at polling stations to vote” and have a strong household influence on political matters.
Baru said he hoped PSB will be able to reach an understanding with other Opposition parties to prepare for GE15 “because things are still not right with this country”.
“In fact, many would say that the situation is getting from bad to worse,” he said, noting recent reports of large-scale financial scandals involving national institutions.
He added that the Opposition parties needed to work together for a better shot at victory at the national level.
“Against all odds, Pakatan Harapan (PH) won the elections, even though it was a short lived victory,” he said.
