DAP S'wak chief's redelineation stand overlooks rural realities, may be politically-driven, says analyst

Borneo Post

5 days ago

Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi
KUCHING (July 16): The argument by Democratic Action Party (DAP) lawmaker Chong Chieng Jen about the voters-based redelineation in Sarawak is deemed by some as being politically-motivated.
According to socio-political analyst Datuk Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi, although Chong's stand is rooted in the democratic principle of 'one-person, one-vote', there are those who will counter-argue that Chong has underestimated the logistical difficulties of representing vast, sparsely-populated rural areas, where accessibility and infrastructure remain major challenges.
'His (Chong's) stance is viewed by some as being politically-motivated, aimed at protecting DAP's urban strongholds.
'Additionally, Chong's rejection of state seat expansion seems to overlook the strategic value of increasing Sarawak's parliamentary representation, which could strengthen the state's influence at the federal level,' said Awang Azman, a professor from Universiti Malaya.
'In essence, while Chong's position is commendable for its commitment to electoral fairness and fiscal responsibility, it would benefit from a more inclusive consideration of Sarawak's rural realities and a constructive proposal for increasing federal representation alongside voter-based reform.'
Chong, the Stampin MP and Padungan assemblyman, had highlighted a stark disparity between urban and rural areas, where some urban constituencies had over 70,000 voters, while certain rural ones had fewer than 10,000 – arguing that this undermined equal representation.
The DAP Sarawak leader also questioned the rationale behind increasing the number of State Legislative Assembly (DUN) seats, highlighting the high cost of over RM20 million and stating that Sarawak was already enjoying one of the most favourable representative-to-voter ratios in the Commonwealth.
'Instead of expanding seats, he (Chong) had proposed a more balanced redelineation model based on a weighted index that would consider both the population size and the land areas,' added Awang Azman.
On Monday, Chong – in a press statement – had urged the Sarawak government to make formal representation to the Election Commission (EC) to adopt a constituency model based on voter population with a proposed range of 17,340 to 23,460 voters per constituency, so as to ensure fair and equal representation in the DUN.
'This is necessary to preserve the true meaning of the term 'wakil rakyat' (elected people's representative) in Sarawak.
'The state assemblypersons are called 'wakil rakyat', not 'wakil tanah' (representative of land).
'We serve the people on the land, not the land itself,' said Chong in a statement, issued in response to the Sarawak government's move of allowing the EC to expand the number of seats in the DUN Sarawak from 82 to 99. Awang Azman Awang Pawi Chong Chieng Jen DAP Sarawak redelineation