Several PBB division heads expected to roll
Several party divisional heads are expected to be replaced in the run-up to Parti Pesaka Bumiputra Bersatu's upcoming convention in July.
Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud's PBB — the backbone of the ruling four-party coalition — has 30 state assemblypersons and 11 members of parliament.
Sarawak has 62 state seats and 27 parliamentary seats.
A decision made recently by the party's central executive committee (MKT) will see all elected representatives automatically becoming division chiefs in their respective constituencies.
This means 41 out of the 62 divisions will be headed automatically by elected reps.
The party's 60 divisions are preparing to elect their divisional chairpersons and committee members and to decide on delegates to the party convention which will be held in Kuching from July 7 to 9.
No contest
The MKT has also decided that there will be no contest for top posts — president, deputy president, senior vice-president and the seven vice-president posts.
However, there will be a contest for 20 committee member positions, of which 11 are allotted to the Malay/Melanu wing and nine to the Dayak(Iban/Bidayuh/Orang Ulu) wing.
Each of the divisions will send 10 delegates meaning each division will have 10 votes.
Malaysiakini understands that one divisional head expected to be replaced is Limbang chief Abdullah Mohd Noor who is also a former MKT member.
An engineer by training and a highly successful contractor, Abdullah was the focus of attention in the last convention when his division was the sole nominator for former defence minister Abang Abu Bakar for the post of deputy president.
The deputy president contest saw a three-cornered fight between Abang Abu and two state ministers Abang Johari Tun Openg and Adenan Satem.
Johari, who is now state minister of tourism, won.
According to reliable sources, Abdullah is likely to be replaced by Deputy Foreign Minister Dr Leo Michael Toyad whose own parliamentary constituency is in Mukah in central Sarawak.
It is learned that there will be changes in three other divisions as well.
Simanggang division head Dr Terudin is likely to be replaced by the member of parliament for Batang Lupar, Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jafaar.
The predominantly Iban Lubok Antu division head Mikai Mandau, a former state assemblyperson and former walikota (community head) of Sri Aman, is expected to be replaced by former senator Bujang Tembak.
Bujang is said to be closely aligned to PBB Deputy President and Sarwak Deputy Chief Minister Alfred Jabu anak Numpang.
In another predominantly-Iban division Bukit Begunan, the present head Piau Ingkot is also likely to be replaced by someone closely linked to Jabu.
Exert control
It is said that Jabu is now attempting to exert control over the Dayak wing after the resignation of Leonard Linggi Jugah as party secretary-general.
There is also talk about a fallout between Jabu and Linggi with the former seen to be more closely identified with Taib Mahmud.
It is learnt that PBB treasurer and assistant minister Awang Tengah Ali Hassan, an ambitious Malay politician who is linked to both Taib and Jabu, has asked party officials to monitor the divisional elections closely.
The party headquarters is expected to send representatives to observe the divisional elections and report back all results before June 15.
There is also a lot of interest in divisional elections in several other Iban areas such as Ngemah, Meluan, Pakan, Tamin, Kakus, Machan, Pelagus, Balleh and Kemena.
The heads of these divisions are known to have close ties with Linggi who also resigned as Sarawak Barisan National secretary-general last month.
Among them is Kapit MP Alex who is Linggi's son and brother-in-law Janggu Banyang, head of Meluan.
In the last party elections three years ago, Abang Johari won the deputy president post with a substantial number of votes from the Iban (Pesaka) wing.
Therefore, the ability of the same group to keep their votes intact will be crucial as they could swing the voting and hence determine the results for certain candidates in the elections for the 20 committee member posts in the party's central executive committee in July.
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