SIBU, July 23- About 3,000 bumiputera members of the Sibu chapter of the Sarawak United People’s Party (Supp) have threatened to quit Supp – if the central leadership is still adamant in taking action against any of the party’s six elected state assemblymen.
Sibu bumiputera unit chairman Andrew Shilling said the members were unhappy over the party’s Central Working Committee’s decision to refer only one of the six to its disciplinary committee.
He was speaking to reporters here today, when responding to Supp president Tan Sri Peter Chin Fah Kui’s statement last Saturday in Kuching, that only one (of the six) had been referred to the disciplinary committee.
The state’s oldest party is embroiled in a leadership struggle between Chin and Sibu branch chief Datuk Sri Wong Soon Koh, who is state minister of local government and community development.
Wong, who is also Bawang Assan state assemblman, has the support of Datuk Francis Hardin (Simanggang state assembleman), Datuk Lee Kim Shin (Senadin), Dr Jerip Susil (Bengoh), Dr Johnical Rayong (Engkili) and Ranum Mina (Opar).
Andrew said the unit would “sink or swim” with the six.
“If you touch any of them, you are (inadvertently) touching all Bumiputera members from Sibu.
“Chin and his group are not sincere in wanting to reconcile all party leaders. Now that they are taking up the disciplinary action, they are burning the bridge of reconciliation.
“Their action is also tantamount to jumping the gun as the registrar of societies (ROS) has yet to determine the status of the party’s legality.
“The ROS had received complaints on certain irregularities in the party’s last triennial delegates conference in Kuching in December 2011 where Chin was voted as its new leader,” he claimed.
Andrew said, although the ROS had sent show-cause letters to the Piasau and Bekenu branches, 12 other branches had yet to recieve them.
To a question, Andrew, who is also political secretary to the chief minister, said he had heard rumours that a certain group would register a new party, should Supp be de-registered.
– BERNAMA
