Ex-deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim's visit to Sarawak this week has boosted the morale of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and other opposition groups in the state.

State PKR leaders said Anwar has given "hope, courage and credibility" that the party is badly in need of after its dismal electoral performances in Sarawak over the past six years.

Sarawak National Party (Snap) deputy president Justine Jinggut said Anwar gave a new sense of direction and purpose for the opposition front in Sarawak.

At the end of a two-day visit during which he met PKR, Sarawak National Party (Snap) and State Reform Party (Star) leaders as well as several non-governmental organisations (NGOs), Anwar told reporters yesterday he was confident that PKR would make some inroads in the coming state elections.

Although state Barisan Nasional leaders are unlikely to lose any sleep because of the surprisingly large crowd who turned up to listen to him at a thanksgiving reception on Monday night in Kuching, at the same time however they know that Anwar's presence could make a difference in the next state elections.

One of Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud's political aides reacted to Anwar's speech in which he talked about corruption and abuse of power in Sarawak.

"It looks like an election campaign speech," he told malaysiakini .

If the way the largely Malay crowd of about 2000 people warmed up and responded to Anwar's oratory was any indication, it could cause problems for Taib's Parti Pesaka-Bumiputera Sarawak (PBB) particularly in Kuching Malay constituencies where it is public knowledge that many Malays are not happy with the present state leadership.

Opposition pact

To what extent Anwar could capitalise on the growing sentiments among the Malay community against the state leadership remains to be seen, however, according to state DAP chairperson Wong Ho Leng.

While local newspapers talk of an opposition coalition pact being worked out, Wong told malaysiakini his party preferred to talk about co-operation at a different level - to avoid confronting each other in the next state elections.

The state DAP has already taken the first step by announcing officially recently that it will concede the Chinese-majority state seats of Padungan and Batu Kawa to PKR. The DAP will concentrate on Pending and Batu Lintang. All the four seats are held by BN Chinese component Sarawak United People's Party (Supp).

There is unlikely to be an opposition clash in other areas where Snap and Star will be fielding candidates as the leaders of both parties are already talking to each other.

One PKR member who has been looking forward to Anwar's comeback is lawyer and social activist Dominique Ng who is likely to represent the opposition in Padungan where he stood before and lost.

Ng said that Anwar offered a welcome change and with his background, having served as deputy premier and acting premier and imminently qualified to be premier, is no doubt an acceptable leader.

During the thanksgiving night, Anwar took a swipe at corrupt leaders, accusing them of treating the state as their own fiefdom. This apparently was enough to convince the Chinese present of PKR's agenda for a Bangsa Malaysia, social justice and combatting corruption and abuse of power.

PKR will be eyeing Kuching Malay and some Dayak and possibly Chinese seats. With the agreement reached before the parliamentarty elections with DAP in March last year, the chances of a clash among opposition parties have been significantly reduced.

Sarawak elections are due in September next year.

TONY THIEN is malaysiakini 's Sarawak-based stringer.