No way for Tiki to rejoin SPDP

Barisan Nasional grass root leaders and supporters putting their donation into the donation's box.

Mas Gading incumbent MP Datuk Dr Tiki Lafe will not be accepted back into Sarawak Progressive Democratic (SPDP) and neither will he be fielded as Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate in the 13^th general election.

SPDP deputy secretary Paul Igai said the party’s constitution only allowed any member who has been sacked from the party to apply to rejoin the party after two years from the date of his or her sacking.

On Nov 25, 2010 SPDP sacked its former secretary-general Datuk Sylvester Entri Muran and followed by four other leaders including Tiki on January 14 2011 following the part’s Supreme Council meeting on the same day.

Three other leaders stripped of their post are Senior Vice President and Tasik Biru Assemblyman Datuk Peter Nansian, Information Chief and Batu Danau Assemblyman Paulus Palu Gumbang and Supreme Council member and Bekenu Assemblyman Rosey Yunus.

The five dubbed the "G5" caused a stir within the party after declaring they have lost faith and confidence in Mawan and repeatedly issued media statements attacking the party president.

Mawan said the SPDP Supreme Council also decided that Tiki would not be re-nominated to contest in Mas Gading because he was not the most winnable candidate while Nansian can kiss good bye to Tasik Biru seat in the next state election.

“What has been said by Datuk Dr Stephen Rundi (Sarawak BN secretary-general) also means that Dr Tiki is not going to be BN candidate while the Prime Minister has said BN candidate must come from BN component parties,” said Igai.

Hence, Igai said Salcra deputy general manager Anthony Nogeh Gumbek, 55, will be BN’s candidate in Mas Gading.

However Tiki still harbour hopes to contest in the election as direct BN candidate and is still actively moving around the constituency to lobby for support.

Rundi had said BN will not create a precedent which will have negative impact in future and as such will stick with the current principle that there will be no direct BN candidate from Sarawak.

“The decision should clear the path for Nogeh to contest in Mas Gading,” added Igai who is political secretary to the Chief Minister of Sarawak.

Rundi also said if Tiki wanted to contest as BN candidate he must return to SPDP but Igai said it was impossible because besides not permitted by the party’s constitution the fact that Tiki and other members of the group of five (G5) have done damages to the party made it impossible for them to be accepted back into the party.

Later in his speech at a gathering in Kampung Sebandi Hilir, Igai on Saturday (March 23) Igai assured that the next BN candidate in Mas Gading would be SPDP nominated candidate.

“The people of Mas Gading will have someone new as their MP who is more capable to serve the constituents,” Igai said, and urged the voters in Kampung Sebandi Hilir and Sebandi Hulu, the two Iban villages to give their full support to BN during the election.

“We have listen and recorded the problems faced by the villagers and with the new MP it is time to resolve these problems,” said Igai to the applause of more than 1,000 people who packed the inside and outside the multi-purpose hall at Kampung Sebandi Hilir yesterday night.

Igai urged the villagers to give their full support to BN candidate (Nogeh) so that after the election they have the demanding power to ask the new MP to bring development to them.

“Support BN new candidate and to change your plight and we promise to come back after the election to help the villagers here,” said Igai.

Igai said with the good policy of the BN’s government and the people friendly national budget there was no reason why the people should not support BN.

He advised the voters in Mas Gading not to believe in the opposition promises as it will only frustrate them because it can never be fulfilled.

Meanwhile Nogeh in his short speech said if he is elected to be the new MP for Mas Gading he would help to solve the various problems faced by the villagers.

He said if nominated to contest he should be able to retain the seat for BN because the party is enjoying good cooperation with the other BN component parties.

“PBB and SUPP Tasik Biru and Opar has giving us their fullest support and even YB Ranum Mina (state assemblyman for Opar) is supporting us, so there shouldn’t be any problem for BN to retain the seat,” he said.

Nogeh also pledged that he will work hard for the people in Mas Gading and will not practice race favoritism in discharging his duties.

At the function the ‘Tabung Amal Wira Negara’ for Mas Gading to help the families of the Malaysian policemen and army personnel killed the Lahad Datuk crises was also launched.

SPDP Tasik Biru youth chief Edid Ngumpel said the money collected from the people in Mas Gading will be forwarded to SPDP headquarters who will channel it to Sarawak Barisan Nasional Youth.