SIBU: Sarawak DAP chairman Richard Wong Ho Leng has finally won a parliamentary seat following five previous attempts, after he defeated Barisan Nasional’s (BN) SUPP’s Robert Lau Hui Yew, in the Sibu by-election here on Sunday, May 16, albeit with a slim 398-vote majority.

Wong garnered 18,845 votes versus Lau’s 18,477. Independent candidate Narawi Haron could only garner 232 votes, thereby losing his deposits totalling RM15,000.

This follows a hotly contested campaign on both sides, with national leaders of both BN and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) descending on Sibu to speak about local, state and national issues.

Wong, 50, had contested in several state and parliamentary elections since he joined DAP as a life member in 1986, but had never won a seat in the national legislature.

“This is one small step for Sibu and a giant step to Putrajaya,” Wong told reporters after his victory was declared here on Sunday night.

This was the fourth time Wong had contested for the Sibu parliamentary seat after three previous unsuccessful attempts against the late deputy transport minister and Sarawak United People’s Party’s (SUPP) Datuk Robert Lau Hoi Chew in 1995, 2004 and 2008.

Wong had lost to Hoi Chew in the March 2008 general election by 3,235 votes.

Wong had also lost to Datuk Seri Peter Chin Fah Kui for the Miri constituency in 1986 and to Datuk Tiong Thai King for the Lanang seat in 1999.

Wong is the incumbent assemblyman for Bukit Assek, the state seat he had recaptured by defeating SUPP’s Daniel Ngieng in 2006. He has been Sarawak DAP chairman since 2001 and a national vice-chairman since 2008.

Hoi Chew was the MP for Sibu for five terms since 1990 before his death last month that triggered the by-election. Hoi Chew and Hui Yew were second cousins.

Hui Yew, 45, is a relative novice in the political arena, despite having joined the SUPP in 1993. He has been a Sibu municipal councillor for the past six years. This was his first contest, either for a state or parliamentary seat.

Sarawak has the most number of parliamentary seats at 31.

Voter turnout on May 16 was at about 70%, higher than that of 67.77% in the 2008 general election. There were a total of 54,695 registered voters, including 2,537 postal voters comprising 1,910 military and 627 police personnel.

The Chinese accounts for the majority of the electorate in the Sibu parliamentary constituency, with 66.7% or 36,494 of the total registered voters of 54,695 as at April 19, 2010, while the Malays/Melanaus number 9,369 or 17.1%, The Ibans total 8,665 voters or 15.8%.  

The DAP had won Sibu once, in the 1982 general election, when Ling Sie Ming defeated Dr Wong Soon Kai, who later became the SUPP president, with a small majority of 141 votes.

The Sibu parliamentary seat comprises three state constituencies – Bawang Asan, Pelawan and Nangka, whose assemblymen are Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh (SUPP), Vincent Goh Chung Siong (SUPP) and Datuk Awang Bemee Awang Ali Basah (Parti Pesaka Bumiputra Bersatu or PBB), respectively.

Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud is the president of PBB, a BN component party. Wong, Goh and Awang Bemee won their state seats with majorities of 2,505, 263 and 4,815, respectively in the 2006 state elections.

According to the 2008 electoral roll, the Chinese made up 91.48% or 21,081 of the 23,044 registered voters in Pelawan. A total of 1,359 or 5.89% were Malays and Melanaus, while the Ibans accounted for 2.36%.
In 2008, BN obtained only 38.84% of the total number of votes in Pelawan, DAP 58.86%, while PKR had 2.3%. On May 16, DAP obtained about 65% of the votes here and BN about 35%.

Based on the 2008 electoral roll in Bawang Asan, the Chinese made up 64.98% or 11,453 of the registered voters numbering 17,291. The Ibans made up 29.57% or 5,025 of the voters, while the Malays/Melanaus accounted for 5.4% of 803. In 2008, BN obtained 55.51% of the votes, DAP 42.69%,  and PKR 1.8%. On May 16, BN polled almost the same at 56%, and DAP 44%.

Based on the 2008 electoral roll in Nangka, 52.8% or 7,040 of the 13,344 registered voters were Malays/Melanaus, while the Chinese accounted for 28% or 3,766. The Ibans made up 18.4% or 2,449 people.
In 2008, BN obtained 67.97% of the votes, DAP 28.86% and PKR 3.17%. On May 16, BN polled 65% of the votes, while DAP got about 35%.

Based on the electoral roll as of April 19, 2010, there were a net addition of 1,016 registered voters compared to the March 2008 general election – with Bawang Asan having a reduction of 1,175, Pelawan gaining 2,562 and Nangka with 371 fewer voters.