DAP to contest 7 seats in Kuching, mulls another in Batu Lintang

DAP has announced the first batch of seats it plans to contest in the upcoming Sarawak polls, namely seven constituencies under the Kuching division.

Sarawak DAP chief Chong Chieng Jen said the party will defend the Chinese-majority Padungan and Pending seats, while seeking to regain the Kota Sentosa, Batu Kawah and Batu Kitang seats it used to hold.

It will also contest the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) strongholds of Tasik Biru and Opar, both of which are Dayak seats, Borneo Post reported.

“Candidate-wise, I think I’ll leave it for another day,” he was quoted as saying.

Chong said DAP was also considering contesting Batu Lintang, a Chinese-majority seat traditionally vied for by PKR.

The DAP vice-chairman added that the party will decide on the state seats to contest in Sibu, Sarikei, Bintulu and Miri within the next two weeks.

Having only held two out of 82 seats in the now-dissolved state assembly, Chong said DAP wanted to strengthen the opposition’s presence in the Sarawak legislature and provide greater checks and balances on GPS.

“There is no democracy without opposition. We are going into the election to offer the people of Sarawak a stronger opposition and, hopefully, more voices in the state assembly,” he said.

On possible cooperation with Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS), Chong said the two parties shared common ground but have yet to reach a formal agreement.

He said further discussions were needed, including a meeting with the PBDS president.

Chong, who is also Sarawak Pakatan Harapan chairman, said PKR has yet to decide whether to contest in the state election, pending a decision by party president Anwar Ibrahim.

“As far as PH is concerned, PKR has not indicated whether it is contesting. We will do our own planning first,” he said.

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