Taib: BN fielding old and new faces

MUKAH, Sarawak: The state Barisan Nasional (BN) will stick to its proven strategy of fielding both old and new faces in the next general election, Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud said today.  

Taib, who is also the state BN chairman, said the old faces or incumbents were needed because they had the experience and had been tested although they might be less active.

"We need the new ones so we can train them up with our experience to be tomorrow's leaders. The new ones will also be more active," he told a meet-the-people session in Oya, near here.

Taib, who is also president of Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), the state BN anchor party, said PBB would field one or two new faces in the election.  

"It is up to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, as the federal BN chairman, to decide and endorse. We certainly still need young leaders who want to see Sarawak and the country remain strong, stable, united and progressive," he said.

Sarawak has 31 parliamentary seats, 29 of which are held by the BN and two by the DAP. Of the 29 seats with the BN, 14 are held by PBB, five by the Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP), six by Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) and four by the Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP).      

Taib said that in the last state election, PBB fielded 10 new faces while six of its 14 MPs are those who had served one term.  

He also said that three of its MPs are women, and there was always the possibility that it would field more women in future elections.  

Taib advised the people not to dwell on petty issues in the next general election but to think of the greater picture of more development, stability, prosperity and unity in the state and country.   

"Only the BN government and its representatives can fulfill such criteria and qualities," he said.   

At the function, Taib announced a grant of RM100,000 to encourage more women to do business in the nearby town of Dalat.