Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud said today the state legislative assembly will not be dissolved by this week to pave the way for the state election.  

Taib, who is also Sarawak BN chairman, said it was not true that he would call on Yang Dipertua Negeri Abang Muhammad Salahuddin Abang Barieng on Friday to seek his consent to dissolve the 71-seat assembly, the term of which expires in July.  

"I don't know. These people can create news as they like but I cannot confirm that," he told reporters after attending the state-level Prophet Muhammad's birthday parade and gathering in Kota Samarahan.

He was responding to a portal news report yesterday quoting a source at Astana Sarawak as saying that the Chief Minister’s Office had called last week to fix a Feb 18 appointment with the head of state for that purpose.

"A story is a story. True or not true, let's see lah," said Taib, who also denied that he had called on Abang Muhammad Salahuddin yesterday as he was away the whole day attending the planning committee meeting.

Taib to mark 30th year as CM

Meanwhile, Taib, who will mark his 30th year as chief minister on March 26, is scheduled to deliver a keynote address at the Sarawak BN convention here on March 5 to be attended by 5,000 delegates from all the state BN component parties.

azlan The BN now holds 63 seats in the state assembly, with Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), led by Taib, having 35 seats, followed by the Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP) 12 and Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) and Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) eight each.

Six of the remaining seats are held by the DAP while PKR and Parti Cinta Malaysia (PCM), through an independent, have one each.

The Election Commission is required to hold elections within 60 days of the dissolution of the state assembly.

- Bernama