Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud’s last advice before retirement was to impress upon the state's leaders to safeguard Sarawak's rights and keep it firmly in the hands of Sarawakians.
This, BN secretary-general Stephen Rundi Utom said, was conveyed by Taib as the 77-year-old veteran politician chaired his last ever Sarawak BN leadership meeting this morning.
"His strong words were that we needed to protect the rights of the state as per the constitution," he told a press conference this afternoon after the meeting at the PBB headquarters.
Asked whether this meant keeping Umno at bay from entering Sarawak, Stephen (left) replied: "Something like that".
"What we (PBB) are doing here is exactly what is aspired by Umno from their side (serving the bumiputera community in the peninsula), there is no need to duplicate the same effort (by having Umno in Sarawak)," he added.
Stephen noted that Sarawak was different from the peninsula, and only Sarawakians can understand the complexities and maintain harmony of the state - which comprises of more than 43 different tribes and sub-tribes.
"Nobody else can understand the situation other than Sarawakians... therefore we must see which political party belongs to us (Sarawak), that is the very reason why we think the right people to lead Sarawak is Sarawakians," he said.
'Umno kept at bay'
Taib had announced at the meeting today that he will be stepping down as chief minister by the end of this month.
His departure follows continuous pressure from Putrajaya - since before the 2011 Sarawak state elections - for him to retire, as the chief minister of almost 33 years has been plagued with various corruption allegations.
Swiss-based NGO Bruno Manser Fund alleged that Taib had - through his family - accumulated US$15 billion in wealth during his tenure as chief minister.
Moreover, NGO Global Witness had also released a video on March last year entitled, ‘Inside Malaysia's Shadow State’, in which it secretly filmed Taib's relatives soliciting kickbacks and claiming that they had access to Taib for logging licences.
Despite the controversies, Taib's party - the PBB - succeeded in pulling off a clean sweep of all the 35 state seats which it contested in the last state election.
PBB - together with Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS), Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP), and Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) - is part of the Sarawak BN government. BN controls 55 seats in the 71-seat state assembly.
Taib's strong backing despite the controversies has been attributed to his ability in preventing Umno from setting a foothold in Sarawak.
This sentiment is similarly shared in the Sarawak opposition, despite their disagreements with the chief minister.
'New political era'
PKR's Batu Lintang state assemblyperson See Chee How said Taib's retirement was a "welcomed break" after 33 years, but warned that Umno will attempt to capitalise on this to enter Sarawak.
"He (Taib) has made himself indispensable to PBB, the state BN, and the state government - the mainstay that held the forces together.
"Whoever the successor is, (they) will not be able to achieve that feat without the support of Umno.
“Allowing Umno to gain its foothold at this juncture is not good for Sarawak," he told Malaysiakini when contacted.
He added that Sarawakians must assess the political future of the state as it enters a new political era.
The three possible successors that have been named are PBB deputy president Abang Johari Openg, PBB senior vice-president Awang Tengah Ali Hasan, and PBB information chief Adenan Satem.
Sarawakians have also been mindful of Umno's entry into Sabah, which coincided with a covert operation of illegally issuing citizenship to foreigners in exchange for votes, and forever altering the demography of the state.
This, BN secretary-general Stephen Rundi Utom said, was conveyed by Taib as the 77-year-old veteran politician chaired his last ever Sarawak BN leadership meeting this morning.
"His strong words were that we needed to protect the rights of the state as per the constitution," he told a press conference this afternoon after the meeting at the PBB headquarters.Asked whether this meant keeping Umno at bay from entering Sarawak, Stephen (left) replied: "Something like that".
"What we (PBB) are doing here is exactly what is aspired by Umno from their side (serving the bumiputera community in the peninsula), there is no need to duplicate the same effort (by having Umno in Sarawak)," he added.
Stephen noted that Sarawak was different from the peninsula, and only Sarawakians can understand the complexities and maintain harmony of the state - which comprises of more than 43 different tribes and sub-tribes.
"Nobody else can understand the situation other than Sarawakians... therefore we must see which political party belongs to us (Sarawak), that is the very reason why we think the right people to lead Sarawak is Sarawakians," he said.
'Umno kept at bay'
Taib had announced at the meeting today that he will be stepping down as chief minister by the end of this month.
His departure follows continuous pressure from Putrajaya - since before the 2011 Sarawak state elections - for him to retire, as the chief minister of almost 33 years has been plagued with various corruption allegations.
Swiss-based NGO Bruno Manser Fund alleged that Taib had - through his family - accumulated US$15 billion in wealth during his tenure as chief minister.
Moreover, NGO Global Witness had also released a video on March last year entitled, ‘Inside Malaysia's Shadow State’, in which it secretly filmed Taib's relatives soliciting kickbacks and claiming that they had access to Taib for logging licences.Despite the controversies, Taib's party - the PBB - succeeded in pulling off a clean sweep of all the 35 state seats which it contested in the last state election.
PBB - together with Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS), Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP), and Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) - is part of the Sarawak BN government. BN controls 55 seats in the 71-seat state assembly.
Taib's strong backing despite the controversies has been attributed to his ability in preventing Umno from setting a foothold in Sarawak.
This sentiment is similarly shared in the Sarawak opposition, despite their disagreements with the chief minister.
'New political era'
PKR's Batu Lintang state assemblyperson See Chee How said Taib's retirement was a "welcomed break" after 33 years, but warned that Umno will attempt to capitalise on this to enter Sarawak.
"He (Taib) has made himself indispensable to PBB, the state BN, and the state government - the mainstay that held the forces together.
"Whoever the successor is, (they) will not be able to achieve that feat without the support of Umno.
“Allowing Umno to gain its foothold at this juncture is not good for Sarawak," he told Malaysiakini when contacted.
He added that Sarawakians must assess the political future of the state as it enters a new political era.
The three possible successors that have been named are PBB deputy president Abang Johari Openg, PBB senior vice-president Awang Tengah Ali Hasan, and PBB information chief Adenan Satem.
Sarawakians have also been mindful of Umno's entry into Sabah, which coincided with a covert operation of illegally issuing citizenship to foreigners in exchange for votes, and forever altering the demography of the state.
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