‘Division inevitable if Umno decides to enter Sarawak’

KUCHING: Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) vice president Datuk Daud Abdul Rahman said if Umno insisted on spreading its wings into Sarawak without prior approval from the State Barisan Nasional’s (BN) leadership, division among the people is inevitable.
He said PBB is still the backbone party of the BN in Sarawak by virtue of the handsome mandate the party received during the April 16 state election.
“We (PBB) still have the strong support of the people. PBB won in all 35 seats contested in the last state polls,” he told Utusan Borneo yesterday.
On top of the mandate received, PBB saw an increased majority votes as well as popularity of its candidates, said Daud who is Assistant Minister in the Chief Minister’s Department.
“Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has also clarified that in Sarawak, PPB is Umno’s partner. We could also see the good support of Bumiputeras towards PBB,” he said when insisting that Umno’s attempt to enter Sarawak would be a futile effort.
Daud was commenting on a statement by Umno Batu Pahat member Ibrahim Jeman that he wished to change the manner of recruiting Sarawakians as Umno members.
On Wednesday, Ibrahim, a Sarawakian said his style would not be the same as that of a group which called themselves sponsor of Umno’s entry into Sarawak or JPUNS in that his style was to recruit Sarawakians through valid Umno branches in West Malaysia.
Yesterday Daud said Umno should have been reminded by the example of another West Malaysian based BN component, People’s Progressive Party (PPP) which received only lukewarm public response despite its boast of having many members.
“We look at PPP which came to Sarawak. It seems that they received a negative response from the people here,” he pointed out.
Umno should focus on their affairs in West Malaysia and Sabah instead of Sarawak, he insisted.
“Just let PBB and its partners in the state BN take care of their own backyard,” he added.
“Thank God, we have been well taken care of and our hope is that Unmo can take care of people in West Malaysia and win with a bigger margin in the next general election,” he said.
He stressed that BN would lose big if Umno chose to enter Sarawak as this would only contribute to splits and instability which in turn would benefit the opposition front.
Daud however said he believed Umno’s top leadership would maintain their principle of not coming over to Sarawak not only due to BN principle of consensus and respect but also a political reality.
“If they (Umno) are sincere, I advise them to strengthen their position in West Malaysia. In Sarawak, let us strive