Source: The Borneo Post Feb 2 2012 (Thursday)
KUCHING: A political analyst yesterday said formation of Barisan Nasional (BN) clubs to accommodate disgruntled members of respective components of BN will set a bad precedent for the ruling coalition.
Dr Jeniri Amir, a local university lecturer, feared that if the BN clubs are allowed to spawn, their prominence will slowly erode the relevance of BN political parties and also the power-sharing concept which the BN had been practising all this while.
When rubbishing claims by state independent incumbent Datuk Peter Nansian Ngusie (Tasik Biru) and Datuk Sylvester Entrie Muran (Marudi) that he is only an armchair critic and agent of interested parties, Jeniri said his recent comment on the matter was a responsible one based on academic assessment.
He said his statement on BN’s future and whether should clubs be allowed were based on his experience on the ground for over 30 years and also in his capacity as a political analyst for the last 10 years.
“If my comments and opinions were not worthy, then local and national media as well as international media would not have called me and sought for them (opinions). My opinions are without malice and I am not affiliated to any (political) party. The comments on BN’s future are fair,” he said.
Hitting at Nansian and Entrie that their credibility was also suspect, Jeniri said: “President Truman used to say, there are three truths – your truth, my truth and their truth.”
Nansian and Entrie has made unprecedented moves by forming BN clubs in their respective constituencies and they were also contemplating to get the Regsistrar of Societies (ROS) register them after they were sacked by BN component Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) for undermining party leadership and gross insubordination.
Recently a hardcore ground spokesman for SPDP Stewart Aying who is also SPDP Lambir chief, said the sacked members are trying to hang on to the BN for political survival and to secure the right to disburse BN minor rural project (MRP) fund and maintain their assistant ministerial posts.
Aying reasoned that the BN at the moment do not want to rock their own boat simply by announcing that these independent incumbents (in Mas Gading and Tasik Biru) are outside BN, explaining that if it (the BN) announce that they were outside the coalition, it would technically lose several representatives.
Apart from Nansian and Entrie, the other controversial elected respresentatives are Datuk Dr Tiki Lafe (Mas Gading MP) and state assemblypersons Rosey Yunus (Bekenu) and Paulus Palu Gumbang (Batu Danau).
Aying further said the BN still need them to support their policies during debates in the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) and Parliament, when explaining why it (the BN) appeared to be supporting these independent representatives now.
He also pointed out that the crucial time for the BN is nomination day because this would be the time for the coalition to decide if they should stick to their BN principle or allowed candidates from clubs to contest in elections.
“I would say that, should Mas Gading or Tasik Biru BN clubs be approved by BN then nothing could then stop UMNO, MCA or MIC dissenting members to form clubs everytime they are unhappy with party leadership,” he said.
He added BN clubs would open the floodgates and set a bad precedent in the government fold and such approval would not augur well for BN’s future.
BN is a coalition of political parties and clubs would only set to make all 14 parties in BN irrelevant one day, he stressed.
“Even if these clubs later on sprang into action and turned BN into a single entity or party, there will be no more power-sharing concept which is being practiced by the fold now,” he added.
