The opposition State Reform Party Sarawak (Star) - led by former state assistant minister and medical practitioner Dr Patau Rubis - will contest in the forthcoming parliamentary elections.

"We've decided on who and where to contest," Patau told malaysiakini in an interview .

He also indicated that the party welcomed the leaders and members of the de-registered Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) and Sarawak National Party (Snap).

However, he said there were no negotiations or official contacts between Star and the leaders of the two Barisan Nasional component parties.

Credible performance

In the 1999 parliamentary elections, Star's candidates in three constituencies fared rather well, to the surprise of their rivals.

In the Bidayuh- majority seat of Mas Gading in western Sarawak, Patau garnered 6,764 votes but lost to BN's Dr Tiki Lafe's, who got 10,584 votes in a straight fight.

Another Star candidate, Dr Jerip Susi almost caused an upset in the new constituency of Mambong, also a predominantly Bidayuh seat, by polling 9,655 votes against BN's James Dawos Mamit's 11,327.

In the predominantly-Malay/Muslim seat Batang Lupar, Star's Syid Assimie Ismail Takun@Tekoh Sunggah polled 2,689 votes against the BN's Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar.

In the upcoming elections, Star is expected to contest in at least five seats. It is said to be eyeing Bintulu, which is presently held by BN's Tiong King Sing.

Sarawak has 28 parliamentary seats, all held by the ruling front.

Money politics

Meanwhile, Putau said his party was geared for the long term struggle to try and deliver a message to the people, especially in the rural areas, that there are more important things such as their rights to the land than immediate monetary gains during elections.

However, he conceded that not much of this message had filtered down to the ground but stressed that his party would be patient.

Despite this, he said there was at least one village where the message has gone through.

"We do not use money. We told them what could happen if they sold their votes. They have always voted for our candidates," he added.

Patau was a former senior vice-president of Snap who was removed by Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud as assistant state minister for alleged indiscipline just prior the 1996 state elections.