Julau could be kingmaker in PKR deputy president contest, says MP

SIBU: Security will be very tight at the voting centres in Julau to ensure an incident-free voting during the PKR polls next weekend.

PKR's Julau MP Larry Sng said he was aware that there would be great interest in Julau as it could be the kingmaker which can decide if Datuk Seri Azmin Ali or Rafizi Ramli wins the deputy president's post when the election for Sarawak will take place on Nov 10.

Speaking to reporters after officiating a dialogue with pepper farmers in Sarikei on Sunday (Nov 4), he said the division had been in communication with the police and Rela (People's Voluntary Corp) to provide security at the voting centres.

"Julau, based on the voter numbers is definitely the largest division in the state. Due to the sheer number of voters… their votes will determine who will be the deputy president, in the executive committee and the women's chief. So a lot of focus will be on Sarawak and in particular, Julau," Sng said.

The Julau PKR division had attracted a lot of interest since early October following a spike in its membership, from only 603 on June 26 to 13,000 a day later.

Sng himself was investigated by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on Saturday (Nov 3) over allegations of thousands of phantom members in the party division.

With the deployment of a strong police force and Rela, Sng was confident that there would be no trouble, unlike the fracas in Keningau, Sabah, where Rafizi was allegedly assaulted.

"Julau people are generally peaceful but in view of the special interest and focus on Julau, I won't be surprised many people from Peninsular Malaysia will come to Julau to make sure that their respective teams win," he added.

On the voter turnout, Sng was expecting up to 50% of the members to vote.

On possible poor Internet connectivity, he said it would not be an issue as the party election committee and machinery had selected three suitable places where e-voting can be carried out smoothly.

Both Azmin and Rafizi are locked in a tight battle for the deputy presidency in the PKR elections, which have been marred by complaints of voter fraud and technical difficulties with the e-voting platform.