S'wak Polls: Ba'kelalan candidates looking to convince fence-sitters

Universiti Malaya Centre for Democracy and Elections (UMCEDEL) sociopolitics analyst Assoc Prof Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi said that with less than 24 hours to go before the Sarawak state election, there is still a chance to sway the voters, especially the fence-sitters.

Although there are other candidates contesting, the real fight should be between incumbent Baru Bian of PSB and GPS' Sam Laya, who is a lawyer, from the Progressive Democratic Party (PDP).

"So far, the actual contenders are GPS and PSB, with both having an equal chance of victory and it will depend on the last-minute swing and how they use these last moments to get the fence-sitters over to their side.

"This last-minute campaigning is very crucial and can determine who the electorate will support, especially the fence-sitters and the Dayak community. Our forecast is that the candidate who wins will do so by a very slim majority," he told Bernama.

Baru, a PSB presidential council member who won the Ba'kelalan seat in the 2011 and 2016 elections under Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), and Sam will also be up against Pita Asut @ Peter Asut of Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK), Martin Samuel Labo of PKR and independent candidate Agnes Padan.

In the 2016 election, Baru defeated a candidate from Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP), which has been rebranded as PDP, with a slim majority of 486 votes.

Elaborating, Awang Azman said that it could not be denied that the political journey of Baru, who often changes party and is nicknamed "political frog", might have a small impact on the support towards him this time.

He said that with Baru always changing party, it might lead to voters viewing him as not having a clear direction in politics and this could plant seeds of doubt about his credibility among the electorate.

"This is because Baru had previously contested under the PBDS (Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak), SNAP (Sarawak National Party) and PKR (Parti Keadilan Rakyat)... and now PSB. That's why in the areas that he had contested... although he wins, it's with a slim majority," he said.

The analyst added that based on his recent field study, the chances of the other candidates contesting against Bian, especially the newfaces, were open and bright, but it would depend on their method of campaigning to convince the Ba'kelalan Lun Bawang community.

He said voters would prefer a party that is stable, has an excellent achievement record and a candidate that is well-known by the electorate instead of a party that could not guarantee a solid future.

Through a cross-university study by UMCEDEL, together with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) and local media on Nov 20-27 (phase one) and Dec 8-14 (phase two) and involving 4,500 respondents statewide, among others found that overall the people of Sarawak were satisfied with the management of the country by the Federal government and management of the state under the GPS government.