Who will get slaughtered - DAP or SUPP in urban Sarawak....

The battle for urban seats in the April 16 polls is living up to its billing as the hardest fought in the electoral history of the state.

The Sarawak United People's Party, the Barisan Nasional standard bearer in Chinese-majority areas, is countering a DAP onslaught in 15 urban constituencies in Kuching, Sibu and Miri.

While SUPP is seen to be fighting for its survival, the DAP regards the 10th state election as a chance to increase its representation in the 71-seat legislative assembly through the capture of urban areas.

The DAP, which won six seats in the 2006 state election, faces SUPP in 14 constuituencies -- Padungan, Pending, Batu Kawah, Kota Sentosa (in Kuching), Simanggang (Sri Aman), Repok, Meradong (Sarikei), Bukit Assek, Dudong, Bawang Assan, Pelawan (Sibu) Kidurong (Bintulu), Piasau and Pujut (Miri).

Elsewhere, the DAP is trying its luck in unseating PBB in the BN stronghold of Bukit Kota in Limbang.

The DAP battle plan is for winning seats like Padungan, Batu Kawah, Repok, Pelawan and Pujut while retaining Kota Sentosa, Pending, Bukit Assek, Kidurong and Meradong.

MIRI

Political analyst Ong Kian Ming of UCSI University said that DAP "ceramah" in the three major urban areas of Kuching, Sibu and Miri had attracted big crowds in the last few days, with the state capital registering the largest turnout.

According to him, the DAP seemed to be building momentum in such areas as Pujut, Pelawan and Repok, but was finding it still tough in constituencies like Piasau, Dudong and Bawang Assan.

The DAP-SUPP confrontation is joined by a third contestant in only one constituency -- Padungan, where disaffected former PKR member Dominique Ng is defending his seat as an Independent.

MIRI

"In Kuching, we already have three and we intend to add at least one more to our tally," DAP Publicity chief Tony Pua said, referring to the predominantly Chinese areas the party won in the last election and Padungan.

A survey of the other areas shows that the going is not so good for the DAP which is facing an uphill battle to keep Meradong and Kota Sentosa and finding difficulty trying to capture Piasau, Bawang Assan and Dudong.

In Meradong, SUPP newcomer Ling Sie King, a businessman, seems to be putting pressure on the incumbent from DAP, Ting Tze Fui.

Unlike in the 2006 election, when the contest was five-cornered, the Meradong fight is confined to the DAP and SUPP.

SAREIKEI

A local party member says that SUPP is more united this time round, and its campaign will receive a further boost from the visit of Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to the constituency on Monday.

SUPP seems able to hold its ground in Bumiputera areas such as Iban-dominated Simanggang and Engkilili and two Bidayuh constituencies. SUPP leaders say they are not very concerned about the good attendance at DAP meet-the-people sessions.

SAREIKEI

It is early days yet, and most people at the ceramah want to hear what the opposition has to say, asserts a SUPP leader.

SUPP Sibu chief Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh said:" The DAP claims that many people are turning up at their ceramah. What they don't know is that most of them are SUPP members sent there to monitor the situation."

source:BERNAMA

PM tak jenguk Sibu kerana kecewa?

SENADIN

cheers.