Scorned ex-wives could ruin ‘Randy’ Rayong’s political career

(This story has appeared in Free Malaysia Today on Jan 24, 2011 and is reproduced for the readers of The Broken Shield)

KUCHING: Are conversions and polygamy the new political ball game in Sarawak? It appears that a rising number of political aspirants and have-beens are rumoured to be converting from Christianity to Islam to better their chances of currying favours with Chief Minister Taib Mahmud, who allegedly discriminates against non-Muslims.

Whether this new game plan will work for them in the coming state polls is left to be seen. But political observers are betting that a number of Barisan Nasional candidates “will fall” in the polls for these very reasons.

Meanwhile, the “hottest” gossip to hit Kuching streets is Engkilili state assemblyman Johnical Rayong’s recent conversion. Most of his constituents were in shocked disbelief at his conversion that is until his angry wife, Patricia Dexter Sudok, a Christian staff nurse in Kuching, spewed her angst.

She reportedly leant of her husband’s infidelity, marriage and conversion from an SMS message he sent her.

According to the reports, Rayong was caught for “khalwat” and was forced to marry one Kamasiah Abdul Jalil, a divorcee in her 30s with two children, who works in the chief minister’s office.

Rayong had apparently converted on Jan 29, 2010. (was it coincidence then that partyless Rayong who had waited four long years outside Taib’s door was suddenly accepted into the fold in 2010, courtesy of Sarawak United people’s Party whose decision to take him in has cost them dearly?)


Deceiving the Dayaks

The story gets better, Patricia also said that Rayong had been harassing her to return and campaign alongside him as a “Christian couple” in order to mislead his Dayak voters.

Rayong and apparently quite a few other “new converts” such as Mambong MP James Dawos Mamit and Marudi assemblyman Sylvester Enterie are seeking to conceal their new status from their Dayak constituents.

Dawos, incidentally, is Deputy Tourism Minister and Enterie is an Assistant Minister in the Sarawak cabinet.

All this is more fodder for the opposition, it appears. In the case of Rayong, who seems to have a cup-board-full of “skeletons”, he may have lost it all even before the race. According to a SUPP leader, the party is uncomfortable with Rayong’s “history” and is re-assessing his candidacy.

“The voters in Engkilili are not against him converting to Islam. Far from it. In fact, Christians and Muslims in Engkilili sit side by side in coffee shops or restaurants. They also visit each other during Hari Raya and Christmas celebrations. They always live in harmony.

“But they do not like him because he failed to inform them (of his new status) as well as his failure to look after his two Iban wives,” said the leader who refused to be named.

Rayong, he claimed, has neglected his two families. His two wives were said to have complained to Deputy Chief Minister Alfred Jabu Numpang. They alleged Rayong had failed to come “home” for the past three months or so. His first wife, Patricia, is related to Jabu.

So angry and disappointed are his wives that they are prepared to campaign against Rayong if he does defend his Engkilili seat.

Besides his scorned wives, Rayong will also have to contend with issues over the authenticity of his degree “as a medical doctor” and his political track record.

His opponents have claimed that Rayong is only a doctor of homeopathy, but had presented himself as a medical doctor and opened up a clinic where he dispensed medicines and treated patients.

They alleged that when the authorities demanded for his certificates, Rayong closed shop. It has also raised questions about his integrity.

In the 2006 state election, Rayong won the Engkilili seat on a Sarawak National Party (SNAP) ticket. During his campaign, he attacked BN coalition partner SUPP and its candidate Jonathan Krai Pilo.

But less than a month after his win, Rayong declared that he was independent and a BN-friendly representative. His angry supporters called him a “political frog” who is only interested in his own personal affairs.

He subsequently applied to join an off-shoot of SNAP, Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) led by William, Mawan Ikom. His application was initially accepted in 2007, but faced with strong opposition from SUPP and Taib’s Parti Pesaka Bumiputra Bersatu (PBB), he was forced to resign.

There was also a time when he wanted to join Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) if the Engkilili seat was to be given to PRS under a swapping arrangement with SUPP. But that arrangement failed to materialise and as a result, he lost interest In PRS.


SUPP reassessing Rayong

In the meantime, Rayong had applied to become a SUPP member and for two years he was left waiting. Then suddenly in September 2010, SUPP approved his application, much against the wishes of majority of its members.

The SUPP’s decision resulted in the resignation of the Engkilili branch chairman and the former five-term elected representative, Toh Heng San, from the party.

But by joining SUPP, Rayong has left behind at least 60% of his supporters who were either members of SNAP or the defunct Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) and supporters of the stillborn Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC) of which he was the protem deputy president.

In fact, his supporters are still angry with him for switching parties as they had voted him in on a SNAP ticket. Many SUPP members in Engkilili, too, may not vote for him as they consider him a “frog” that has upset their branch leaders including Toh and Krai.

After more than 20 years as elected representative, Toh has a strong following not only among the Chinese, but also among the Ibans in Engkilili. Toh and Krai’s supporters will certainly not vote for Rayong for his criticisms against SUPP and for neglecting the welfare and interest of the Dayak community during the last election.

Today, Rayong joins the party that he had severely condemned. In September, when accepting Rayong into SUPP’s fold, the party president George Chan described him as the most “suitable”candidate to represent the party as he was not only close to the people, but also popular with the rakyat.

Now, in the wake of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s brazen command to give him “only winnable candidates”, Chan is being forced to acknowledge Rayong’s weaknesses and eat his own words of the latter’s “suitability” as Engkilili 2011 candidate.

Taib challenges NGOs to form political parties

KUCHING – Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud has challenged NGOs to form their own political parties in order to confront him over land and environmental issues.

Launching Sarawak Forestry Corporation’s Orangutan Adoption programme over dinner on Friday night (13 Nov '09), Taib said he was unhappy with some agencies and NGOs which had constantly raised issues pertaining to wildlife and environment in the State.

Taib particularly singled out Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM) which is supposed to fight for human rights, has a lot of issues on land, which later jumped into orangutan talks.

“Why don’t they just form a political party rather than fighting in disguise?” he asked.

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What the Malays say: "Cakap tidak serupa bikin". This expression is aptly applied to Taib. When a group of Dayaks wanted to form a political party way back in 2005, Taib, according to the Registrar of Societies was among Sarawak leaders who strongly objected to the registration of Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC). Here he wants NGOs to form a political party.

His Deputy Alfred Jabu, who had earlier on welcomed any one to form “a political party, or any party or even a tea party ka” labeled MDC as “mai Dayak charut”. Apparently because of Jabu’s remarks, the Federal authorities refused to register MDC on grounds of security that it (MDC) would bring chaos to the country. What stupid reasons for the authorities not to register MDC!

The question we want to ask is: Does Taib really mean what he says and supports the registration of any political party in the State in the near future either by any of NGOs or a group of people? - The Broken Shield

Source: www.thebrokenshield.blogspot.com

Formation of Parti Dayak Iban (PADI)?

While Prime Minister Najib Razak has been advocating for Malay/Muslim unity between PAS and UMNO in the spirit of 1Malaysia concept, is it wrong for Dayaks to call for Dayak unity between Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP), Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS), Parti Pesaka (which is now a branch of Parti Pesaka Bumiputra) and Sarawak National Party (SNAP)?

William Mawan SPDP president, as reported in The Borneo Post today (27 June) called on the people (I am sure he means Dayaks, as they were the main audience in Gawai Ngiling Bidai in Kapit) not to allow themselves to be separated politically.

Instead they should be united and focused on the spirit of ‘segulai sejalai’ (moving forward together) to progress and develop with other races.

To me moving forward together is not enough, we should be ‘segulai sejalai sepenemu’ (moving forward together in united voice). What is the point for us to move forward together if we do not share the same aspiration, the same objective, and the same destination?

Anyway, Mawan’s call should be food for thought. But the only problem towards achieving this “segulai sejalai” is that SPDP is being controlled by big towkays whose objectives are dissimilar with those of the Dayaks’ aspirations. In other words, the non-Dayaks are the stumbling block to Dayak unity.

No doubt there are also other obstacles to Dayak unity. SNAP tried it (Dayak unity), but the party failed. PBDS tried it, it also failed. Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC) tried to revive the spirit of Dayak unity, but it was not allowed to be registered.

So what then should we do? Like the call for the Malay/Muslim unity, perhaps the Ibans should organise themselves first before talking about Dayak unity, so are the Bidayuhs and the Orang Ulu.

By this I mean, we should form our own political party before we can have a loose coalition in the spirit of Barisan Nasional or Pakatan Rakyat among the Dayak parties and call it Pakatan/Barisan Dayak Sarawak.

For the Iban, I am thinking of Parti Dayak Iban. In short, PADI and the emblem should be a paddy stalk to symbolize our farming and rural background.

What is or are your comments on this? - The Broken Shield

Source: www.thebrokenshield.blogspot.com

Dayaks in S'wak BN 'should join PKR' ~ Malaysiakini

Taken from http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/106472

Sarawak PKR leader Augustine Liom wants Dayaks in Barisan Nasional (BN) to join Pakatan Rakyat to change the state government, so that native customary rights (NCR) to land can be protected.

“It is a matter of urgency that we put into power a government that is kind to us and which is protective of our rights especially land rights and the rights to property as guaranteed in the federal constitution,” he said.

“Any support to the BN and its component parties means only a support to maintain a status quo. We get nowhere. A handful of seats to Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party, a handful seats for Parti Rakyat Sarawak and a handful of seats to Parti Bumiputra Bersatu and Sarawak United People’s Party. That is all.

“We continue to be split, divided, ruled and manipulated and to gradually lose our lands. So we have no choice but to go for a radical or revolutionary change in our political approach.”

Liom, a former judge, was recently appointed to head the land and human rights bureau of the state PKR. He was speaking at a Gawai Dayak dinner organised by the PKR women’s wing in Kuching.

“Our Dayak friends in BN ought to now join us to make this happen to change the state government. Otherwise posterity will not judge then too kindly [...]

“Do not be overwhelmed by your comfort of office that you forget where you have come from. I say ‘comfort of office’. I don’t say ‘comfort of power’ because we know that they do not have that much power.

“Real and meaningful power is in the exclusive domain of chief minister and his handful of inner circle of confidantes. They will not be so kind as to share that power.”

Liom said the results of the March 2008 parliamentary elections have led Sarawakians to realise the political reality.

“The Dayaks now need a national party as their political vehicle. Sarawak National Party is nominally alive. Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak is dead and gone. Malaysian Dayak Congress has not seen the light of the day.

“What we need is a political vehicle, that is PKR, and we need Malays like Anwar Ibrahim (right) to champion the Dayak cause, not Malays who will divide us or who will rob us of our NCR land.

“We place our trust in PKR and Anwar to champion the Dayak cause. This is a stark political reality we have to come to accept and to live with. There is now no alternative to that.”


‘Daylight robbery’

Liom said BN leaders have denied that the state government had robbed the people of their NCR to land.

“But when longhouse folks wake up one day to find tractors ploughing through their rubber or fruit trees on land they have toiled for generations and are told that the government had granted lease to their land to a logging or plantation company usually connected to people in power - is that not daylight robbery? That is what is happening in our midst,” he said.

He said the government would then tell the landowners to prove that it was NCR land, but that this is difficult when the original settlers have died and because landowners could not acquire NCR by purchase.

“So in effect, it means gradually and eventually NCR land will be no more. And that is the policy of the BN government,” he added.

“Have we heard any BN Dayak leader calling for a survey and for the issuance of titles to NCR land? No one in BN dares to make such a call. On such matter, only one man decides.”

PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, who was present, said: “If we want to change Sarawak for the better, then it is now or never.”

At a press conference after declaring open the Batu Kawa PKR service centre earlier, she said the party had held discussions with a number of past and present BN leaders to join the party before the end of the year.

“I am not going to reveal names. Let there be an element of surprise,” she said, without dismissing the possibility that some of these leaders are from Sarawak.

Let MDC rest in the dusty file of ROS

Nothing short of magic could have ensured the speedy registration of Malaysian Makkal Sakthi Party (MMSP), said M. Kathirveloo, a close associate of Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leader, P. Uthayakumar.

In view of this, Kathirveloo asked if MMSP was endorsed by BN?

He suspects this because he tried to register another party, Indian Rights Action Front (IRAF) in June last year, but the application was turned down in April this year.

In a letter to IRAF dated 3 April 2009, the ROS said that the application was rejected because the organization was suspected of having similar name to the outlawed Hindraf.

For MMSP, its leader Thanenthirran met with PM Najib Tun Razak one month before the registration of the party.

It was obvious that MMSP had the blessing of the Barisan Nasional with the ultimate aim of further splitting the Indians. The MMSP leader was with Parti Keadilan Rakyat and he resigned from PKR when he was not selected to contest the Bukit Selambau by-election.

Now the Indians have MIC, PPP, MIUP and MMSP. Any party, wishing to be registered, and is seen to be working against the interests of the Opposition will surely be approved. And any party working against the interest of parties in the government will not be approved.

Thus, it was perceived to be working against “national security” that Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC) could not be registered. The real reason is not “national security” but on the strong objection of Sarawak leaders, who do not want the word “Dayak” to be used in the name of the party.

Firstly, the word “Dayak” has been banned from being used in Sarawak government official communication since 2004 when the Sarawak Interpretation Ordinance was amended.

Secondly, the State leaders said to be fearful of the word “Dayak” that might have the magic wand to unite all the Dayaks in Sarawak. The unity of the Dayaks is therefore seen to be against the interests of the parties that rule Sarawak now.

Just a couple of weeks ago, Joseph Entulu, deputy president of Parti Rakyat Sarawak, let the “cat out of the bag” when he proposed to drop the word “Dayak” as it connoted “uncivilized, uncouth and low class”. He felt ashamed to have anything to do with Dayaks.

Entulu’s remark was seen as playing to the gallery or dancing to the tune of his new found political master – the "Aki" who since 1966 had been advocating for the split of the Dayaks into Ibans, Bidayuhs and Orang Ulu.

Yes he was successful with the removal of Stephen Kalong Ningkan as Sarawak’s first chief minister. He had a hand to see that SNAP was split in 1983 as well as in the deregistration of Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS).

The “death” of PBDS was thought to be his greatest achievement. This followed the ban on the use of the word “Dayak”. And this explains why any attempt to revive PBDS through MDC or any Dayak party will surely be strongly opposed by the present leaders in the State.

The real reason is the fear that these leaders are harbouring in their minds that one day there will be “Ketuanan Dayak” in Sarawak.

For the time being, MDC is best left to rest in a dusty file of the ROS until and when a new federal government hopefully the Pakatan Rakyat government will come to power, say in 2013.

If Parti Sosialis Malaysia can wait for more than 10 years to be approved as a party, there is no reason why we Dayaks cannot wait another three or four more years for the installation of a new government that may be friendly with the Dayaks.

And for the time being the hardcore Dayaks need to “Numpang” or “nyarok” or even “nangkir” other friendly parties who share our aspirations to fight for the interests of the Dayaks and defend our customary rights over land. – The Broken Shield

Source: www.thebrokenshield.blogspot.com

Unting’s death a big loss to PRS

Dublin Unting Ingot, aged 56, passed away at 1.30 a.m. this morning, leaving behind his wife, Florin and their three children, the youngest of them is 4 years old.

Unting, a young agriculture officer, was brought by Tan Sri Leo Moggie, then president of Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) into politics to contest in the 1991 State election against Mikai Mandau of BN-PBB. Unting won with a majority of 83 votes.

Mikai, who was the incumbent, was a PBDS man; he defected from the party to PBB in 1987 soon after winning the seat. His defection opened the way for Unting to contest.

In the 1996 State election, Unting contested the seat on a BN-PBDS ticket and won with a majority of 2,555 votes. In 2001, he won the seat uncontested.

However, he faced a strong challenge from Nicholas Bawin in the 2006 State election. This time around, he contested on a BN-PRS (Parti Rakyat Sarawak) against Bawin, a Malaysian Dayak Congress/SNAP candidate, and won with a reduced majority. He polled 3,295 votes as against 2,489 votes secured by Bawin.

Unting could have lost the seat, if only Bawin had got the money to sustain his campaign and cover the ‘ulu’ and remote parts of the constituency.

Soon after he joined PBDS, Dublin’s quality as a leader was noticed by the party leadership. After the 1997 TDC, he was appointed as Secretary General of the party. When PBDS rejoined the BN State government 1996, he was appointed an Assistant Minister in the Chief Minister’s office.

Later he was appointed Assistant Minister of Modernization of Agriculture and Assistant Minister of Tourism. In a cabinet reshuffle in July 2004, he was appointed as Assistant Minister of Agriculture and Assistant Minister of Sports. And he retained the post after the 2006 State election.

Dublin played an important role in the 2003 PBDS leadership crisis, helping Dr. James Massing to challenge Datuk Sri Daniel Tajem for the top post of the party. Although Tajem and his men won the leadership of the party, Masing, Unting and Sng Chee Hua disputed it and lodged a complaint to the Registrar of Societies. The protracted leadership crisis led to the deregistration of PBDS in October 2004 and at the same time gave birth to Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS).

While Masing became PRS president, Unting was elected as vice president of the party. His loss will be greatly felt by PRS leaders and members as well as his supporters of Batang Ai Constituency. His body has been brought to his house at Stutong, BDC. Funeral has been arranged to take place on Thursday, 26 February 2009. – The Broken Shield

Source: www.thebrokenshield.blogspot.com

Malaysian Dayak Congress to decide on party registration soon

Following a brief interview with BERNAMA yesterday, the following article was published in The New Straits Time Online, today 18 Jan 2009.

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By: Caroline Jackson, BERNAMA

KUCHING, Sun.: The pro-tem committee members of the yet-to-be-registered Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC) will decide soon whether to make a fresh application to the Registrar of Societies (ROS), its protem information chief Joseph Tawie said.

He said, alternatively, party members, comprising former Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak PBDS) members who remained partyless, could join Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) or other political parties in the state.

“We (MDC) have received a number of invitations to join the opposition but we are still holding on as we have yet to decide on the next course of action,” he told Bernama today.

The Home Ministry, in a letter dated April 9 last year, rejected MDC’s appeal to be registered as a political party on grounds that its registration could pose a threat to security and public order.

The pro-tem committee members had appealed against the ROS’ decision to the Home Minister in August 2006, after an application to register the MDC, submitted on May 6, 2004, was rejected on July 19, 2006.

Following the deregistration of PBDS on Oct 21, 2004, many of its 200,000 members opted to join its offshoot, the Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS), a state Barisan Nasional (BN) component party while “tens of thousands ex-PBDS members remained partyless,” Tawie said.

In the May 2006 state election, MDC candidates had to contest under the opposition Sarawak National Party (SNAP) tickets as its registration could not be approved on time. ROS, meanwhile, advised the applicants to submit a fresh application if they were still interested to pursue the MDC registration.

Home Affairs Minister rejects MDC application

The Minister of Home Affairs has rejected the appeal of Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC) to register it as a political party on grounds of security and public order.

In a letter dated 9 April 2008, signed by an official of the Ministry said that the Minister after a careful investigation and consideration has to reject the appeal to register Malaysian Dayak Congress.

“The appeal is rejected based on Section 7(3)(a) of the Societies Act 1966 on grounds that its registration can cause a threat to security and public order,” the official said in the letter.

However, if the applicants were still interested to pursue the MDC registration then they should submit a fresh application to the Registrar of Societies (ROS).

In revealing this today, Joseph Tawie, Protem Information Chief of Malaysian Dayak Congress said that the application to register MDC was submitted on 6 May 2004. The Registrar of Societies rejected it on security grounds under Section 7(3)(a) on 19 July 2006.

The protem committee on 12 August 2006 appealed against the decision of the Registrar to the Minister of Home Affairs.

“Now the Minister has rejected our appeal under the same Section,” said Tawie, who expressed deep regret over the decision of the minister.

Section 7 (3) says: “The Registrar shall refuse to register a local society where - (a) it appears to him that such local society is unlawful under the provisions of this Act or any other written law or is likely to be used for unlawful purposes or any purpose prejudicial to or incompatible with peace, welfare, security, public order, good order or morality in Malaysia;”

Tawie said the protem committee members will meet in the next few days whether to submit a fresh application or not.

But in the meantime two options are open to tens of thousands ex-PBDS members who have remained partyless since the deregistration of Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) on 21 October 2004. (Before its deregistration PBDS had nearly 200,000 members.)

One is for them to join Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and the other is to join any of the existing parties in the State.

Personally, I will call on the ex-PBDS members to find a leader and in a group let us all join PKR, hoping that one day PKR together with DAP and PAS will form not only the State government of Sarawak, but also the Federal government.

Only with a change of government can we change laws that are harmful to the Natives. - The Broken Shield

Source: www.thebrokenshield.blogspot.com

MDC letter to the British Government

Representatives from the Dayak community of Sarawak should have been invited to attend a briefing at the House of Lords regarding the plight of the Malaysian Indians on 8 December 2008. After all, the plights of the Dayaks and Indians are almost the same.

British Conservative Shadow Minister for Education and a Member of the House of Lords, Baroness Verma of Leicester hosted the briefing on the plight of minority Indian rights of Malaysia. The briefing followed a letter written to the British Government by the Hindu Rights Action Force (HINDRAF) in November last year and later HINDRAF demonstrations to highlight their problems.

Held at the House of Lords on behalf of the friends of minority communities in Malaysia, the purpose of the briefing was for members of the House of Lords and House of Commons to obtain a true picture on the plight of the ethnic minority Indian community in Malaysia.

Giving the briefing were the Director of Public Policy of Hindu American Foundation Ishani Chowdhury, Director of Centre for Public Policy Studies Malaysia Tricia Yeoh, Human Rights Advocate Malaysia P. Waythamoorthy and Editor of Malaysiakini K. Kabilan.

It is sad that Malaysian Dayaks have not been invited to attend the briefing even though we wrote a letter to the British High Commission. In fact the protem secretary general of the yet-to-be registered Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC) wrote a letter a month earlier than the HINDRAF, to the British High Commission.

Copies of the letter were sent to Foreign Minister, Minister of Home Affairs, Registrar of Societies and American Embassy regarding the gross injustices and discrimination by the authorities against the Dayaks who were once the British subjects before Sarawak, Sabah, Singapore and Malaya formed the federation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963. Our letter was apparently ignored as we did not organise “strikes to highlight our problems” as the Indians did or that we were/are a coward lot; or that we have become irrelevant.

Let me produce excerpts of the letter for all of us to see. (Full details of the letter are published in The Broken Shield – The Dayak Dilemma due to be out soon). The letter dated 18 October 2007 said: -

"We feel that we have the right to bring to the attention of Her Majesty Government, as our former colonial masters regarding our plight, hoping that Her Majesty can advise the Malaysian authorities to accord the Dayak community the privileges and rights as enshrined in the Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) report and the Malaysian Agreement.

“Our customary rights over land, with the passing of amendments to the Land Code
have been taken away from the Dayaks and are being given to rich businessmen or
companies under the guise of Provisional Lease for the cultivation of oil palm in big scales. While other communities have progressed by leaps and bounds, the Dayaks have remained mired in the doldrums of poverty, little better, if at all, as they had been under the British tutelage. There is a difference, however, while the British Government guaranteed the rights to land held under customary laws, but in our present situation the opposite seems to operate adversely against the Dayak community.

“As if these discriminations are not enough, the Dayaks are not even allowed to
form a party of their own to articulate their political, educational, cultural, economic and social aspirations. What Dayak-based parties they had in the past were being deregistered one by one – first the authorities deregistered Sarawak National Party (SNAP) and then Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) both on flimsiest reasons. The Dayaks who number about 60% of the State population are encouraged to be members of every political party by the BN leaders. This is a subtle way of ‘divide and rule’ community.

“Following the deregistration of PBDS in October 2004, some ex-PBDS members on 6 May 2005 submitted an application to register Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC).
After more than one year of submission, the application was rejected by the Registrar of Societies on 19 July 2006 under Article 7 (3) of the Societies Act giving reasons that MDC would be a potential threat to national security for its rejection.

“It is in this light that we the protem committee members and the Dayak community who were once Her Majesty’s subjects appeal to Her Majesty Government to put pressure on the Malaysian Government.”

Strange it may seem, the Indians have also taken a similar course of action against the British Government, except that they were more aggressive, more demanding and took their problems to the streets. So on 25 November 2007, they launched what is famously known as the HINDRAF (Hindu Rights Action Force) march to the British High Commission handing a note to Her Majesty Government.

Although the Dayaks have missed the first briefing, it is hoped that another briefing may be called specifically to hear the grouses of the Dayaks. Through this blog we appeal to the British High Commission to arrange for the protem committee members to meet any British leader, British MP, or staff of the High Commission so that the committee members can brief any one of them on the plight of the Dayaks. – The Broken Shield

Source: www.thebrokenshield.blogspot.com

PKR Congress: Tajem’s presence causes a stir

Dato Sri Daniel Tajem’s presence at Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)’s 5th National Congress at the Malawati Stadium, Shah Alam last Saturday not only caught 200 Sarawakian delegates and observers by surprise, but is also expected to generate some reactions from his political foes or friends.

Upon hearing of his arrival which was announced, many of them rushed to greet him; they did not expect him to be present, so they were extremely happy to see him around. Tajem’s invitation was made through The Broken Shield. Only a handful of people knew that he had accepted Anwar Ibrahim’s invitation.

As a special guest, Tajem was ushered to the VIP frontline seat where he sat together with Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) president, Yong Teck Lee and Zaid Ibrahim, former UMNO minister in the Prime Minister department, Dr. Goh Cheng Teik, former Gerakan minister, Dr. Aness Munawar, (from USA) and members of Diplomatic Corps.

Tajem used to tell his supporters to be cautious either joining UMNO or PKR. He neither encouraged, nor discouraged them but advised them to wait and see. “We do not know what plans Anwar has for the Dayaks,” he said.

Likened by Anwar Ibrahim as the “star” or described by Yong Teck Lee as the “icon of Dayak politics”, Tajem is still the man to watch in Sarawak’s politics as people still listen to him. Thus his presence at the congress is sure to give all sorts of indications and interpretations to young Dayak professionals and thousands of ex-PBDS members; it can mean giving them the “green” light to join PKR at a time when Dayaks have failed to register a party of their own like Malaysian Dayak Congress.

In view of this failure PKR is therefore considered to be the most “suitable” party for them through which they can articulate their aspirations and address their frustrations and at the same time play national politics. It will not be surprising to see Dayaks joining PKR in droves in the immediate future.

But for Tajem, adviser to protem Malaysian Dayak Congress, accepting the invitation was one way how he could assess or evaluate the seriousness and commitment of PKR’s pledge in trying to dislodge Abdul Taib Mahmud from his 27-year old rule of Sarawak.

Personally, he said, he did not harbour any ambition as age had caught up with him. “But what I want is to see change in Sarawak. I don’t care who is going to be the Chief Minister after Taib, be he Malay, Chinese or Iban, as long as the policy on Native Customary Rights (NCR) land is changed,” he said to The Broken Shield, and added: “The land that has been seized must be returned to the land owners. This is our priority.”

Protem committee still pursuing MDC registration

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
3 August 2008


The protem committee of Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC) is still pursuing its registration with the Home Affairs Ministry and the Registrar of Societies, although one or two of the committee members have abandoned the MDC struggle, said Joseph Tawie, protem information chief of the Congress.

In a statement today, he said: “Those committee members who still believe in the objectives and struggle of the Congress will continue to pursue the MDC registration and will be approaching the authorities again soon regarding the status of their appeal and registration.”

He said that the committee had also received many queries and feedbacks from ex-PBDS members and supporters regarding the appeal and had assured them that the committee had discussed various options to be taken pertaining to the MDC registration.

Some even offered to serve and replace those who had abandoned the struggle and the aspirations of the yet-to-be registered party, he said and expressed disappointment over the unfair treatment by the authorities against the Dayaks who wished to form their own political party.

Ends

Protem members are still pursuing MDC registration

Within a period of one month, Nicholas Bawin has again mentioned that the formation of Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC) has been shelved. He has now joined Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) as one of the deputy chiefs.

By joining PKR, Bawin has therefore automatically opted himself out from MDC. In fact since he made the first statement on 28 June 2008 that he had joined PKR, he has therefore been replaced by someone else as protem president of the yet to be registered MDC. The rest of the protem committee members who are still in MDC are still pursuing the registration of the Congress as a political party. In fact the protem members have recently discussed with a legal firm with a view to sue the government over its no response to their appeal.

Since Bawin is with PKR, he has no more relevance talking about MDC and indirectly talking about Dayak agenda. Now he has a different agenda - an Anwar Ibrahim agenda.

But what puzzled the protem members was why Bawin single-handlely decided to shelf the formation of MDC. Did he discuss with other members? Or is he telling the hardcore members of the defunct PBDS that there is no hope in registering MDC as a political party and that they should follow him into PKR.

With due respect to Bawin, he has not got the charismatic personality of persons like Datuk Sri Daniel Tajem who have a great following.

Further more Bawin was asked to be protem president of Malaysian Dayak Congress when the proponents held their first meeting in April 2005 and once MDC was registered someone else who was academically better qualified and had greater influence would lead the party. Even the protem committee members had agreed to be replaced.

We hope Bawin should stop using the yet to be registered MDC as a tool to entice the hardcore Dayaks to join him in PKR. In PKR like other multi-racial parties, the Dayaks are only making the numbers and contributing to its strength but with little influence. Are we going to play a peripheral role under the Pakatan Rakyat?

Read past news about MDC in The Borneo Post below:-

• MDC now in God's hand, says Bawin
• SNAP, MDC bombed out!
• MDC optimistic appeal will be considered
• New Home Minister to get MDC demand
• MDC appeals to PM to expedite registration

Is PKR the answer to Dayak unity?

FOLLOWING the good performances by parties, which espouse multi-racialism at the March 2008 elections, many hold the views that racially based parties like UMNO, MIC and MCA are no longer relevant in today’s politics. Thus, focus has been centred on Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR).

When the defacto leader of PKR, Anwar Ibrahim visited Sarawak a couple of months back, many so-called Dayak leaders jumped into the PKR bandwagon honestly believed that multi-racialism “is good for the Dayaks”. Even those closely associated with the formation of Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC) have given up the idea of pursuing the registration of the congress.

“MDC is a communal party. It is not good for the Dayaks. PKR will look into the interests of the Dayaks,” they said and added: “Dayak problems will be treated as National problems.”

But is multi-racialism good for the Dayaks? Or for that matter is PKR the answer to Dayak unity and woes?

Recently the author of The Broken Shield was with Datuk Sri Daniel Tajem and two MDC leaders trying to find out the opinions of Dayak leaders in Sibu, Bintulu and Miri regarding their stand on application to join PKR. What we found out was that there are two schools of thought.

First, there are those who are too eager to join PKR because they believe that they would automatically be made leaders of their respective areas and their responsibility was to recruit as many Dayaks as possible. And as leaders they believe they will be given the first choice to be selected as candidates.

Second, there are Dayak leaders who are cautious before committing themselves into joining PKR. Because if they are too eager how would Anwar Ibrahim look at them or Dayaks as a whole? Further more, if anything goes wrong, it will not be an easy thing to make amends. For the Chinese in PKR, they have DAP to fall back to and the Malays, they have PAS. But what about Dayaks?

As Tajem told them, he neither encouraged them nor stopped them from joining PKR. But what he wanted them to know was that after in politics for nearly 40 years, he had fallen into sweet promises of politicians, many of them were his close friends. He felt cheated and worst of all being betrayed. There were therefore lot of disappointments, frustrations and unhappiness.

Anwar Ibrahim may be a good person. But what about other leaders especially those who come after him? Little doubt PKR is a multi-racial party, but are the Malays readily conceding their rights such as the sovereignty and supremacy of the Malays in order to give equal rights to the Dayaks? Are they prepared to give up their “ketuanan Melayu”? As long as this is the Malay attitude, there is always the master/slave syndrome; and as such how can we be equal to them in terms of opportunities?

Two things we must make it very clear to the Dayaks. One is joining PKR as an individual, and the other is joining the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) or People’s Alliance through a political party.

Joining PKR on an individual basis has more disadvantages than advantages. You are merely adding to their number, playing peripheral role with Dayak unity being further undermined and Dayak political power severely weakened. Whereas joining Pakatan Rakyat is like becoming a member of Barisan Nasional. Indeed PR is an alternative to BN. In our opinion, it is necessary that we pursue with the registration of Malaysian Dayak Congress or through the existing parties like SNAP. Not only MDC or SNAP will be able to present a formidable force of unity in the People’s Alliance, but the chance of a Dayak becoming the Chief Minister of Sarawak is there.