In a surprise move, DAP and PKR will be swapping two seats they won in the 2006 Sarawak election.

At a press conference in Kuching tonight, the Sarawak PKR leadership said it will swap the Padungan seat it now holds for the Batu Lintang seat currently held by DAP.

NONE This could mean incumbents Dominique Ng ( Padungan ) and Voon Li Shan ( Batu Lintang ) may be left without seats to contest.

Ng ( left ) and Voon are considered mavericks in their respective parties.

The press conference was attended by Sarawak DAP chairperson Wong Ho Leng, PKR state chief Baru Bian and PAS state commissioner Adam Ahid.

The last minute swap comes as a major surprise because Padungan is PKR's first and only seat held in East Malaysia.

Moreover, Ng, a former DAP leader who fell out with the party in the 1990s, is well rooted in Padungan.

The move is potentially risky for DAP because Ng has a history of standing as an independent in three-cornered fights.

Voon, on the other hand, is believed to be a thorn in the current DAP leadership's flesh.

Some see the move as attempts by both DAP and PKR to impede the political careers of Ng and Voon.

'I feel betrayed'

When contacted by Malaysiakini , Ng said: "I feel betrayed."

"This announcement has taken me totally by surprise. DAP had announced that it had given up Padungan and Senadin, so how can this happen? It is incredible. I'm totally shocked."

He said that even Anwar was surprised about it when he called the de facto PKR leader after learning about the announcement.

"He (Anwar) is having a ceramah , so I will meet him afterwards.

"Baru did not even have the courtesy to inform me before making the announcement."

Ng said he has made advance preparations for the election and that "even my posters have been printed".

However he refused to comment on his next move, besides saying, "this is not the end".
 
Voon: The people are important, not me
 
Voon, when contacted said, "I don't know anything. I am watching football."
 
Asked wheher he would will you contest in the April 16 state election even if his party does not niominate him for a seat, he said: "You should ask the leader what they will do with me."
 
As to whether he would consider running as an independent, Voon said: "I don't know anything at the moment... let them decide. Let it become that way.

 
"I am not important, the people are more important. The people and the country are more important than the party. Let the people decide, for they will know what to do."
 
The three state Pakatan leaders also confirmed that PKR would be contesting at least 24 seats while DAP and PAS would be contesting 15 and five seats respectively.
 
PKR's negotiations with Sarawak National Party (Snap) are still ongoing.
 
The full lists of Pakatan's candidates are yet to be confirmed.