PKR has warned ally DAP that it will field candidates in four disputed seats in the upcoming Sarawak polls unless both parties can come to an agreement before nomination day.

The Election Commission has set nomination day on December 6, while polling day is on December 18.

State PKR leaders have accused state Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman Chong Chien Jen of defaulting on the decision to refer the seat dispute to the PH presidential council for deliberation in a state-level meeting on Thursday.

Sarawak PKR acting chairman Abang Zulkifli Abang Engkeh said DAP has no intention to bring the dispute to national leaders when it unveiled its candidates for the upcoming polls the next day (yesterday), including for the four disputed seats – Senadin, Pujut, Piasau and Kemena.

Senadin, Pujut and Piasau are Chinese-majority seats in Miri and traditionally given to DAP, but the Kemena seat in Bintulu is “loaned” to the party in the last polls, claimed PKR in a statement yesterday, adding that it wants the seat back.

DAP lost in three of the four seats, winning only in Pujut. However, the court disqualified Pujut assemblyman Ting Tiong Choon for having a dual Malaysian-Australian citizenship.

Abang Zulkifli told The Malaysian Insight: “The recent PH meeting has agreed for the presidential council to finalise seat allocations. The dispute is unresolved.”

“Efforts to settle it will continue. However, we are not discounting the fact that there will be a multi-cornered fight (in those seats).”

Chong should have waited for the presidential council’s resolution, as agreed during the meeting, he added.

“He should not have pre-empted the decision by handing out the ‘watikah’ (the letter of authority) yesterday.”

Abang Zulkifli is expected to stand in Lingga, a Malay-majority seat.

He said PKR wants to contest the four seats because it “clearly has the strength” there.

DAP should know that Sarawak PKR, unlike state chapters in the peninsula, has the autonomy to make its own decisions, he added.

Chong said to consider the decision made when Julau MP Larry Sng was state PKR president, when asked if any change has been done on seat allocations at the meeting on Thursday.

PKR leaders – Miri MP Michael Teo, state chapter vice-chairman Roland Engan, secretary Joshua Jabeng and information chief Abun Sui Anyit – remained mum.

Abun had last night told The Malaysian Insight that there is an agreement to not talk about the dispute, for now.

“We all agreed, but suddenly DAP (went) against the agreement yesterday.”

The Sarawak PKR leadership council had in a statement yesterday accused its ally of having “refused to negotiate openly and transparently”.

PKR has attempted to meet DAP’s top leadership in the state to discuss the matter for many months, but have been “faced with blank refusals”, it added.

The council said it has explained that owing to the departure of Sng in February, “any personal agreement between him and Sarawak DAP is considered null and void” as it was done “independently without the knowledge and agreed consent” of state PKR leaders.

In its argument for the Piasau and Senadin seats, PKR said its two-term Miri MP Teo retained the seat “with strong majorities in Pujut, Piasau and Senadin” in the 2018 general election, as the party has “strong grassroots support from both the Chinese and Dayak communities in these three seats”.

State PKR leaders said DAP has also been offered a “win-win formula”.

Chong’s response to PKR’s anger is to appeal to it “to focus on the 47 seats that it will contest under the agreement and win as many as possible”.

“Do not waste valuable time and energy grabbing seats and (losing) the goal to win the war against Gabungan Parti Sarawak,” he said in a statement today.

Before PH components – Amanah, DAP and PKR – signed the seat allocation agreement on January 2, “there had been many rounds of negotiations with not only Sng, but also with other state PKR committee members”, he added.

He also said Abang Zulkifli and Jabeng are among regular attendees of the negotiations. – November 27, 2021.