PKR Will Pay Heavily For Discord, Say Analysts

By Mohd Noor Firdaus Mohd Azil

KUCHING, April 4 (Bernama) -- PKR will pay heavily for its failure to reach agreement with SNAP on seat allocation, according to analysts.

Universiti Malaysia Sarawak social science senior lecturer Dr Jeniri Amir does not think that PKR can improve on its performance in 2006, when the party won only Padungan.

"I don't think they can do better than in 2006," he said, adding that PKR's best chance was in Be'kalalan which state PKR chairman Baru Bian is contesting.

He said the failure to reach a compromise was probably due to the "interference of PKR national leaders who don't understand local sentiment and aspirations".

Jeniri said the PKR decision to contest 25 of the 27 Dayak-majority seats that SNAP wants for itself shows disunity that reflects badly on both parties.

There will now be at least three contenders in the 25 constituencies, and probably more, Jeniri said.

He added that PKR and SNAP would split the votes to the advantage of Barisan Nasional.

Head of the INMIND think tank Norizan Shariff said that PKR should learn from PAS and the DAP which are contesting only in areas where they had long been operating.

"People in Sarawak want to see parties which have been long with them and not just emerge when there is an election," he said.

Political Science lecturer at Universiti Teknologi Mara in Kota Semarahan Nadrawina Isnin said the multiple-cornered fights would give the voters more choices.

She believes that the contests would be more intense with more candidates seeking votes.

But the problem for PKR and SNAP, according to political observers, is that they will have to share the opposition votes in the 25 constituencies.