SARAWAK Pakatan Harapan has rejected any plans for the state Barisan Nasional to join the ruling coalition, saying it would be tantamount to working with a “corrupt regime”.

Citing an unnamed source within Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu, Malaysiakini reported that Sarawak governor Taib Mahmud had met with Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad in Kuala Lumpur recently. 

The source spoke of the possibility of forming a state-based coalition and that Taib will summon Sarawak Chief Minister Abang Johari for a meeting either today or tomorrow.

Sarawak PH chairman and state DAP chief Chong Chieng Jen said any en masse defections would be completely opposed to by the state PH.

“The report cites an unconfirmed source as to whether such a meeting occurred or not. Regardless, it is our Sarawak Pakatan Harapan stand that we will not accept any of the Sarawak BN parties joining us, which includes PBB,” Chong said.

“Accepting PBB into Pakatan would be akin to Umno joining Pakatan at the national level,” he told Malaysia Decides. 

“We have fought so hard against the corrupt regime. And now that we are seeing some light and a chance to have these corrupt leaders brought to book and be held accountable for past corruption and misdeeds done to Sarawak, it would be absurd to allow Sarawak BN parties to join PH. It would whitewash all the corruption they committed.

“Our party fought so hard along the lines of integrity and our supporters supported us through the difficult times because they believed in our integrity.
 
“On that count, we cannot and will not accept Sarawak BN, especially PBB, into the fold of Sarawak PH,” he said. 

On rumours that a few Sarawak BN MPs are joining PH, Chong said the lawmakers would be vetted for corruption before being allowed to cross over. 

“They will be accepted subject to vetting by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission,” he said. 

PBB, Sarawak’s dominant component, controls 13 parliamentary seats followed by Parti Rakyat Sarawak (3), Progressive Democratic Party (2) and Sarawak United People’s Party (1), bringing the total of Sarawak BN parliamentarians to 19.

Sarawak opposition parties, DAP in particular, long opposed BN’s rule, claiming that the state’s development had stagnated due to corruption. They also called Taib one of Malaysia’s most corrupt politicians. – May 11, 2018.