The people, especially rural folks, have been told to prepare themselves for the onslaught of government critics and instigators during the state election.      

"They are on a common psychological mission to stop you as traditionally strong supporters of the Barisan Nasional government to stop voting for its candidates," Deputy Information Communication and Culture Minister Joseph Salang said.      

He was speaking at a 1Malaysia gathering organised by the special affairs department at the SK Tanjung Penasu, near Sibu last night.      

Also present at the function was the state Minister of Environment and Public Health, Wong Soon Koh, who is expected to be the BN candidate for the Bawang Assan seat.      

Salang said the group would not stop at anything and would not be above cooking up lies and allegations to achieve their aims.       

"If you are easily hoodwinked, you will deny yourself, your family and the community to enjoy development and progress for the next five years.      

"If, on the other hand, you vote for the BN candidate, you are voting for continuity in development, progress and political stability," he added.      

On the communication problem faced in the area, Salang said he would direct the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission to look into the setting up of a booster station to enhance transmission.      

Same tune in Miri

Meanwhile in Miri, Deputy Chief Minister George Chan said today the government had done much for the Miri folk and attended to their welfare regularly.      

"If you love Miri, vote BN....We do not promise the moon, but we do what we can. That is the difference between us and the opposition who only know how to make promises that they cannot fulfil," he said at a meeting with the Iban community at Bandar Baru Permai Jaya in Miri.

Chan said that BN leaders come to Miri almost every week to help solve  problems the people face and not only during an election.     

Miri, whose main industry is oil and gas, has three state seats - Piasau (with 16,600 voters), Pujut (22,577) and Senadin (22,432).     

Chan, who will be defending his Piasau seat in the April 16 election, said he would do anything to stop people from destroying the peace and harmony in Miri.     

"I will work my guts out to make sure they don’t destroy it. I do not want anybody to try it. That is why I said I will come back from the grave to haunt that fellow," he told reporters after launching the 2011 Miri Preschool Telematch.     

The SUPP president, who has lived all his life in Miri, said he wanted to see Miri become an exemplary modern city with its multiracial population living in peace and harmony.      

In the 2006 state election, Chan won the Piasau seat, defeating PKR candidate Ngu Hee Hieng by 6,573 votes.     

Limbo in Limbang

The Bisaya community which is estimated to number just around 10,000 people in Sarawak, is also being urged to give full support to the BN in the upcoming Sarawak election.     

Sarawak Planning and Resources Management Minister II Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hassan said although at times there were differences in opinion regarding some issues, these must be set aside temporarily to ensure the continued development of the community, the majority of whom reside in Limbang.     

"The Bisaya have only one elected representative, that is in Batu Danau. I urge the community to give their full support to the BN incumbent (in the election)," he said when opening Persatuan Bisaya Sarawak's (PBS) biennial general meeting in Limbang today.     

Paulus Gumbang, the incumbent for Batu Danau, where the majority of its residents are Dayaks, is from the Sarawak Progressive Party (SPDP), a component party in Sarawak BN.      

In the last election in 2006, he defeated Sarawak National Party's  (SNAP) Sawan Jiram by a majority of 1,262 votes.     

Paulus is expected to be retained for the seat and is likely to be up against Lawrence Cosmas Sunang Simpang of Snap.     

In other developments, Awang Tengah gave his assurance that the state government would give serious attention to the issue of according bumiputera status to Bisayas of mixed parentage.      

"I know there some Bisayas having Chinese names but are not proficient in Chinese dialects and live the Bisaya way of life. We will try to resolve this issue by according bumiputeras status to this group," he said.     

On the Batu Danau constituency, he said the federal government was committed to develop rural areas as evidenced by the RM100 million allocation set aside for this under the National Key Result Areas initiative for the years 2010 to 2012.     

"This allocation is for rural electrification, piped water supply and roads," he said.          

‘Gov’t projects stopped when independent won’        

In the 2006 state election, an independent Gabriel Adit Demong won the Iban-majority seatof Ngemah which is one of the two state seats in the Kanowit parliamentary constituency with a majority of 549 votes.    

For the record, Ngemah has the distinction of being the state's only non-BN controlled rural seat.   

Adit was previously the BN representative through the now defunct Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak for three terms. He served another term as an independent.      

Two years ago, he joined the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and then moved to Parti Cinta Malaysia (PCM) of which he is the state chairman.    

According to longhouse chief Lembat Atau, 47, for the past 20 years they had enjoyed minor rural projects (MRP) but this stopped abruptly when Adit won.      

"It is fortunate for us that our Member of Parliament, Aaron Dago Dagang is from the BN.      

"But what he can bring, he has to share across the board with the nearby Machan constituency as well. I cannot say everybody is happy with the situation," he said.      

He said it was very difficult for them to meet and talk to Adit over their problems and needs.  

"His walkabouts have been too few and too infrequent to remember," he said.      

Lembat said what the folks needed most in Ngemah were more roads. For most, the river is their only means of communication and it is expensive.      

"We also want basic amenities like water and power supplies,” he lamented.      

Businessman Wong Ting Hung and another longhouse chief Angat Nabau said the people were now for the BN irrespective of who the candidate would be.      

The BN through the Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS), in trying to wrestle the seat from Adit, is likely to face a candidate from the Sarawak National Party (Snap), the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and an independent.      

According to Alexander Vincent the chairman of the Ngemah PRS branch, folks from the 100 longhouses living along the Senibong Tada Road in the seat are grateful to the government.    

"Concrete plans are now in place to bring water and power supplies. Pipe mains and power lines are being brought in," he said.      

The Ngemah seat with about 175 longhouses, has now 7,962 registered voters. The Ngemah/Nirok areas have the most with about 1,800 voters.      

Nanga Kajah with over 700 voters and about six hours' journey by longboat from Kanowit town is the furthest settlement area.    

Nomination is on Wednesday and polling on April 16. 

- Bernama