24-07-2025
PKR Serian chief proposes new Bung Sadung state seat for fairer development
Senior William Rade
KUCHING (July 24): A new state seat must be created in Serian Division to ensure equal development and fairer allocation of government funds, said Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Serian chief Senior William Rade.
He proposed this new constituency be named Bung Sadung, after an iconic mountain in the Bidayuh-majority area, and strongly believed the location holds great potential for agrotourism and agricultural activities that could boost the local economy.
He explained the proposed constituency should comprise villages surrounding Bung Sadung, those around the Padawan link road, and nearby villages.
'The villages in this proposed new constituency can number up to 50, and are mostly Bidayuh villages. Under a new constituency, these villages will benefit from more focused efforts to boost the local economy, including agrotourism.
'Also, with this new constituency, it is our hope there will be a township built there as the administrative centre and rural growth centre, which is also good for the local economy,' he said.
Senior made these remarks when commenting on the recent passing of the Dewan Undangan Negeri (Composition of Membership) Bill, 2025 by the State Legislative Assembly (DUN), which paved the way for an increase in the number of state constituencies from 82 to 99.
He said that the increase of 17 new seats should ensure there is no longer under-representation of the people, especially in constituencies which are vast in size.
He also noted that the new constituency proposed by him would take up mostly villages which are currently in the Tebedu state constituency
'Look at it this way, these villages will benefit under bigger government funding, and a lot of development projects can be implemented when placed under this new constituency. For Tebedu, there can be more focus towards developing it as the Gateway to Sarawak, particularly since the Indonesian new capital city is being built in Kalimantan,' he said.
He hoped the local leaders, professionals and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) will support the idea for this proposed new constituency and the name suggested for it.
'On the behalf of the people, I request the Election Commission (EC) will look into the matter seriously during the redelineation exercise. This is for the long-term growth of the area.
'The area is growing in population and number of settlements, and the people need a ADUN (assemblyman) to servs the rea effectively,' he said.
If the idea is not materialised, he is worried that the people there will further miss out on development and financial spin-offs, as it will take up to another 10 years for another redelineation exercise to take place.
'We hope everyone can support this idea. Now it is the best opportunity to realise this new constituency, under this stable government led by PMX (current Prime Minister) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim),' he added. Bung Sadung lead new Senior William Rade Serian division state seat
