Sarawak DAP: Sim’s statement tells it all about BN’s failures

The Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) president Dr Sim Kui Hian’s statement calling on voters in the state not to “look at peninsula” at this time around is an admission of all the failures of the BN ruling government, said Sarawak DAP.

State DAP chief Chong Chieng Jen's special assistant Kelvin Yii said Sim's statement reflects his ignorance of how policies decided in Putrajaya affects all, even Sarawakians.

Sim made the statement on Friday during a Chinese New Year dinner hosted by the Federation of Kuching Division Community Association.

In reminding Sarawakians to be focussed on strengthening the position of the state politically, economically and financially, he had called on Sarawakians not to be “too concerned about the peninsula”.

“This is also an indirect admission of the failures of the BN federal government under Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak,” Yii said in a Whatsapp text to Malaysiakini.

“This was the same 'modus operandi' that SUPP tried to use during the previous state elections in 2016, and now they are recycling the same slogan in an attempt to mislead people into believing whatever happens in Putrajaya and the peninsula does not concern us, here, in Sarawak.

“It is important for us to know that whatever decided in Putrajaya will affect us as a state and all the failed policies and bad governance perpetuated by the BN ruling government including the introduction of multiple taxes like GST, in order to pay for the wastage and debts incurred by the ruling BN government will be borne by us as well,” he added.

Yii (photo) also pointed out that currently, the country’s national debt is about RM900 billion which will be paid by every single Malaysian, including Sarawakians.

According to him, this year alone, the people are paying a total of RM31 billion in annual interest to service the debts, which is almost as much as the whole education budget of about RM32 billion.

“The hypocrisy of Sim and SUPP is, that while they try to convince people not to look at what is happening in Peninsular Malaysia due to all the scandals and mismanagement, they themselves are the ones that continue to empower and enable Umno-BN to be in power for the past 60 years in Malaysia.

“Without the support of BN Sarawak and all the component parties, Umno-BN would not be in power and the implementations of policies that have divided the nation and the rise of religious and racial sentiments would not have taken place," Yii said.

He also said he agrees that it is important to strengthen the position of Sarawak politically, economically and financially and the best platform for that will be under the new Pakatan Harapan government.

Yii said the Harapan coalition has shown sincerity to recognise the rights under the Malaysian Agreement 1963, as well as pledged to return 20 percent oil royalty to the state, 50 percent of taxes collected in Sarawak back to Sarawak and also promised education and healthcare autonomy, among others.

“Perhaps SUPP should stop trying to live in a cocoon and assume what happens in the peninsula does not affect us. Worst still is how they try to mislead others into believing their narrow mentality, but the fact of the matter is, even the candidates for SUPP had to be decided and approved by Umno-BN which was confirmed by the recent statement by Chief Minister Abang Johari.

“Is it not ironical, when they ask people not to look at what happens in peninsula but yet their own future is decided by those in the peninsula,” he added. -Mkini