Early Sarawak state assembly sitting no indication of early polls, says Karim

 PBB information chief Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah says the November sitting may be held in October to follow the 2027 budget announcement.

PBB information chief Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said holding the state election with the additional 17 seats as voted for by the state legislative assembly in July last year could face some constraints.

PETALING JAYA:

A Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) leader has dismissed speculation that the next Sarawak state election is likely to take place in November.

PBB information chief Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said such rumours based on the possibility that the Sarawak state legislative assembly sitting will be brought forward to October is unfounded, The Borneo Post reported.

He said the possible change of the sitting from November to October should not be linked to speculation over the timing of the state election.

“Usually, the sitting is held in November. This time, it may be held in October after the 2027 federal budget announcement in Parliament.

“It is not surprising because in Sarawak, the assembly usually sits twice a year,” he told reporters after watching a Sukma diving event at the Darul Ehsan Aquatic Centre in Shah Alam today.

Karim also stressed that any early sitting of the state legislative assembly is at the sole discretion of the premier (Abang Johari Openg).

“That is the premier’s prerogative. If the state assembly sitting is brought forward, there may be certain reasons for it,” he said.

Meanwhile, Karim said holding the state election with the additional 17 seats as voted for by the state legislative assembly previously could face constraints due to the time required for the delineation approval process.

Karim said the timeline for endorsement is now tight.

He said the Election Commission (EC) would first need to display the proposed electoral boundaries, which he believed would take at least three months before the subsequent process could be carried out.

“Technically, I think the process would be quite difficult. It is not that it cannot be done, because I see that the EC already intends to display the proposed number of seats.

“But the problem is that the process of displaying them takes time. At least three months,” he said.

He said the period may not be sufficient to enable the next Sarawak election to be held using the 99 seats approved by the state legislative assembly in July last year.

Sarawak’s next state election must be held by mid-April 2027 at the latest. - FMT