WIND BLOWING NOT STRONG ENOUGH!

By : DATUK SERI YONG TECK LEE

THE reality is that a change of federal government is possible only if the Borneo states of Sabah and Sarawak shift away from the BN to the opposition. The Sarawak state elections results, if translated into parliamentary seats, means that the opposition can capture only 4 to 5 seats in the main towns out of the 31 in Sarawak. Hence, the opposition must urgently and sincerely re-strategize for the general elections.

The lesson from Sarawak for the Sabah opposition is that the key to changing the government lies in the combined strengths of both the rural and urban areas that cut across demographic lines.

As an elaboration, a rally of 35,000 people in Penang was sufficient to change the state government in 2008. But in Kuching, a rally of 35,000 cannot even change the city mayor. This means that just relying on urban or on rural areas alone is not sufficient.

We must win in both the rural and urban areas. In the rural areas, local issues, party organization, personal strengths of candidates and the smart use of resources are crucial factors in beating the BN’s vastly superior machinery.

In Sarawak, PKR, especially, should have concentrated their resources in marginal areas instead of over spreading themselves too thinly all over the vast state. As a result, all 13 marginal seats were lost to BN. BN also managed to turn around ‘Black Areas’ like Bawang Assan and Senadin, both defended by a demoralised SUPP.

If the opposition had concentrated resources in these 15 areas, then the opposition could have won a formidable 28 or more, thus denying BN its two-third majority. PKR also wasted much precious time and resources fighting fellow Pakatan partner SNAP. The end results show that PKR has beaten not only SNAP but also itself. This is a self-inflicted damage that could have been avoided.

Previously, I had reminded PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim that we should not underestimate BN’s political will to remain in power. BN leaders have too much to lose and will fight tooth and nail to remain in government.

Of all people, Anwar, a former UMNO acting Prime Minister, should know what I mean. Not everyone is like SAPP who walked out of the incumbent BN government and chose to fight from outside. It takes time and efforts to build a strong team based on consensus.

The days of top down coercion from KL to Sabah and Sarawak are over. KL-based parties must accept this fact in order to strengthen the opposition in Sabah and Sarawak. Hence, it is not too early to re-strategise a common opposition campaign in facing the BN in the coming general elections.