Manyin still keen to stay on

By ROBERT KENNETH

KUCHING: Infrastructure Development Minister and Communications Minister Datuk Seri Michael Manyin said if given the chance he is ever ready to contest to defend his Tebedu seat in the forthcoming state election.
“If the Barisan Nasional say I stand I will be there (in Tebedu constituency),” said Manyin in an interview with The Star.
The three terms state assemblyman said is was confident of retaining the seat for BN in coming election, adding he has strong support from the grassroot.
“I have done my very best and Iam very happy with what I had done and the people in my constituency are also very happy with the development taking place in the area.
“I promised the late Datuk Michael Ben (former state Assemblyman) that I will not disappoint him and I did what I had promised him,” he added.
Manyin said all the villages in Tebedu constituency are already link with roads and by March next year electricity supply coverage in the area will be 100 percent.
For water supply, he said the whole area will also be covered with some villages will get the gravity feed water project.
The school headmaster who turned politician said BN is able to retain all six Bidayuh majority seats in the coming election.
With his latest statement it appears that a Veterinary doctor (Dr Sindang), the person he groomed to take over from him has to wait for another five years to get the chance to contest in the election.
Dr Christopher Kiyui, who runs a private clinic in Bau was also speculated to take over from Manyin.
Dr Christopher hails from Kampung Taie, near Tebedu, the same village with former State Assembly speaker Datuk Seri Robert Jacob Ridu.
In N16 Bengoh, the grassroots are still supportive of incumbent Dr Belek @Jerip Anak Susil, 53, from the troubled Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) which lost eight seats at the last state election in 2006.
They still want Dr Jerip top stay on but not the party he is representing. They wanted SUPP to move out of the constituency and swap the seat with either Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) or Sarawak Progressive Demokratik Party (SPDP).
“Dr Jerip he is still relatively young in politics. He still has at least 10 more years to be in active politics and to ease him out prematurely is a lost to the constituency,” said his supporters.
At least four individuals are keen on the seat. They are a senior custom officer, a bank officer, an accountant and two times election candidate Mangan Ngandok.
“No matter who is the representative in Bengoh if he/she is from SUPP it will make no difference,” said Dr Jerip sympathizers.
Recently Dr Jerip Susil said his Bidayuh community was unhappy that some party members were spreading slander about him, adding to their discontent about the party’s choice of a Chinese member to chair the Padawan Municipal Council.
He said his detractors within the party had been accusing him of spending too much time at his medical clinic and failing to serve his constituents in Bengoh.
“I know they have been carrying out nasty campaigns against me. They want me out because I am a rival to one of the party’s leaders.
”Fortunately, they belong to a small group in SUPP.”
Jerip said it was true that he spent most his time at his clinic, but added that the clinic doubled as a service centre for his constituents.
SPDP is making its presence there and had won praises from the people.
Bengoh is one of two Bidayuh-majority seats controlled by SUPP. The other is Opar.