Internal bickerings within the Sarawak United People's Party (Supp), kept under wraps since the parliamentary elections ended in late March, has now emerged in the open.

Supp deputy president Law Hieng Ding has publicly accused party president Dr George Chan Hong Nam for breaching a gentleman's agreement in his (Chan's) role that led to his (Law's) exclusion from Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's new Cabinet in March.

Speaking to a large crowd of supporters at the Sarikei Civic Centre yesterday afternoon, Law, the former Science, Technology and Environment Minister, said that Chan had reneged on a gentleman's agreement before the March general election for him to defend the Sarikei parliamentary seat.

Although he retained the seat with a large majority, he said he was not recommended for a federal cabinet post.

"To my utmost regret, the party leader did not uphold the gentleman's agreement in nominating me for the federal cabinet post," a bitter Law told the crowd, which included Supp treasurer David Teng Lung Chi, who is also an assistant minister, and Meradong state assemblyperson Ting Chek Sii as well as several other local leaders.

Campaign against Chan

Law's two-page speech in English and faxed to local newspapers, confirms malaysiakini's earlier reports of an emerging feud between the two top leaders of the party, the second largest in the state's four-party ruling coalition.

It could also signal what may be the start of an orchestrated campaign, likely to originate from the central Sarawak of Sibu and Sarikei, to undermine Chan's leadership and even possibly forcing him to step down.

The deputy chief minister said last week, "I will step down only when the time comes (to do so)."

Chan's problems are not confined to his feud now with Law, who is a Foochow and comes from a well-to-do family with business interests that started with timber in the 1960s.

There are also more than murmurings of disenchantment among some sections of the party's Kuching leadership against the central leadership, following the party's failure to retain the Bandar Kuching seat which fell to the opposition DAP.

Chan's critics in the party said he made the wrong decision in opting for 42-year-old businessman, the former Senator Wee Kok Tiong (photo left) as BN-Supp candidate, who lost to state Dap secretary Chong Chieng Jen.

According to various sources who spoke to malaysiakini , the first inkling of Law's anger and disappointment was at a recent Supp central working committee (CWC) meeting that Chan chaired at the party headquarters in Kuching.

Law was said to have confronted Chan with written evidence that could prove that he (Chan) had never submitted his (Law's) name to the prime minister after the elections.

According to those present, the party president had obviously not anticipated that at all, as he had insisted earlier that he had submitted both Law's and Peter Chin's (Miri MP) names to Pah Lah.

In his speech in Sarikei yesterday, Law said that in line with convention the prime minister would respect the recommended list of names for cabinet posts submitted by the leader of a Barisan Nasional component party.

For this reason, he added, he was not included in the new cabinet line-up.

He said, however, he respected and whole-heartedly support the decision of the prime minister and the BN government.

Law said he had served the party and nation for four decades "without complaint or regret", and throughout his political career he had dedicated himself whole-heartedly to his responsibilities and duties.

Grave concern

"To me, personal gains or losses are of little significance," said Law, whose family business interests include the timber-based conglomerate KTS Group of Companies.

"The party president's (Chan) action is to me bearable, but to the people it is a matter of grave concern and consequence," he added. He described Chan's action as "a breach of trust" - in effect calling him a liar.

Law said he could understand the "disappointment,anger and frustration" of his constituents, party members, Chinese guilds and associations on hearing of his exclusion from the cabinet.

The Sarikei MP, who vowed to continue serving the constituents regardless, said: "The fact that the gentleman's agreement had not been upheld called into question not only the integrity of the highest echelon of the party's leadership, but also the transparency and fairness of the party mechanism in the selection of candidates for government posts."

This was why he had proposed at the recent CWC meeting that a special task force be set up immediately and convened to come up with a blue-print to rationalize the process for such selections.

He added that the blue-print should be formally tabled at the Supp delegates conference in December, saying it was time "to revamp Supp for the future."

Meanwhile, Chan, when contacted today, said internal party matters should be handled internally and not decided or discussed in the press.

Supp secretary-general Sim Kheng Hui, who is also an assistant state minister, declined to be drawn into public comments on Law's criticisms of the party president.

He said it was an internal party matter that was best left to be dealt within the party.