KUCHING: There is no need to change the leadership of Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), which had proven itself by leading the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) coalition to a landslide victory in last December’s state election, says a party leader.
PBB vice-president Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said this was why there was no contest for the party’s top posts at its triennial delegates’ conference, which starts tomorrow.
He said there would only be a contest at the lower level with 22 candidates nominated for 16 posts in its bumiputra wing.
“It was not staged. We opened up the top posts for contests, but members respected what happened in the last state election.
“We had never secured such a big victory before, winning 76 out of 82 seats.
“So, there is a feel-good factor among members that the current team should continue to lead the party,” he told reporters after chairing a state youth development steering committee meeting yesterday.
Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg headed the list of candidates who were elected unopposed last week to PBB’s top posts for the 2022-2025 term.
Its election officer Datuk Awang Bemee Awang Ali Basah said Abang Johari was the sole candidate nominated by all 82 branches for the president’s post.
Deputy Premiers Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah and Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan were also retained unopposed as deputy presidents while Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof and Datuk Seri Stephen Rundi were unopposed as senior vice-presidents.
Also elected unopposed were the party’s nine vice-presidents, who include the Women and Youth chiefs.
Separately, Abdul Karim said more than 600,000 new voters had been added to the electoral roll following the implementation of Undi18 and automatic voter registration.
He said this meant the number of voters in every state constituency had increased by at least one-third.
“My area, Asajaya, saw an increase of 5,700 voters while Kota Samarahan has more than 31,000 new voters.
“Whether they will go out and vote is another matter,” he said, adding that the party would carry out voter education programmes among rural youth.