BN to drop Aaron Dagang?

Some of his constituents in Kanowit have told PRS they don’t want him, say his detractors.

KUCHING: There is intense speculation here that Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) will bow to public pressure and drop Kanowit MP Aaron Dagang from its list of candidates for the coming general election.

PRS Secretary-General Wilfred Nissom told FMT the party had already decided to let Dagang defend his seat, but other sources in Barisan Nasional said it might soon feel compelled to reverse that decision.

The sources, who appeared to be against Dagang’s candidacy, said his constituents in Ngemah, Poi and Bawan were dissatisfied with his service and had made representations to PRS against him.

Dagang, who is a vice-president in PRS, has served as Kanowit MP for two terms. The sources said the common complaint against him was that he was aloof from his constituents, including his party’s grassroots leaders.

Nissom said there was no truth to the rumour, adding that Dagang was on the list of candidates that the party had presented to BN.

“There has been no compelling reason for the party to alter its decision at this stage,” he told FMT.

However, Dagang himself is apparently taking the speculation seriously. Sources said he had told his supporters that he would consider contesting as an independent candidate if PRS were to drop him.

Topping the list as his replacement is Joseph Jawa, a senior forest officer.

Jawa has lately been busy visiting longhouses. During the Chinese New Year celebrations, he was seen in the company of PRS grassroots leaders at several formal functions.

Dagang’s unpopularity among sections of PRS and BN has its roots in the leadership crisis that led to the demise of Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) about a decade ago.

James Masing, who is now the PRS President, challenged Daniel Tajem for the PBDS presidency in 2003. This led to an unresolved crisis that resulted in the deregistration of the party in October 2004. Most PBDS members blamed Masing for the deregistration.

PRS was formed by Masing and his followers. It was registered on the day PBDS was deregistered.

FMT’s sources recalled that when Dagang contested on a BN ticket in the March 2004 parliamentary election, BN leaders, including those who would eventually helm PRS, threw their support behind independent candidate Frederick Bunsu. They campaigned for him and availed him of BN resources and government facilities.

Dagang had the support of Minister of Energy, Communications and Multimedia Leo Moggie, a blood relative to him.

Harsh words were exchanged between Moggie and Masing during the height of the campaign.

Despite the odds against him, Dagang won with a 2,688-vote majority.

With the deregistration of PBDS in October 2004, Dagang and two other MPs—Joseph Salang (Julau) and Jawah Gerang (Lubok Antu)—became partyless.

But on the eve of the 2008 parliamentary election, Dagang and Salang joined PRS to avoid being dropped as BN candidates. Gerang, who refused to join PRS, was replaced by William Nyallau.

Sources said grassroots leaders in PRS still doubted Dagang’s loyalty to the party.

“He is surrounded by his cronies and ex-PBDS members only,” said a former PRS supreme council member.