KUCHING: Not since the early years of SUPP have its members seen so much excitement and drama at their branch meetings.
For a party that has become accustomed to no-contest internal elections, the significance of the branch polls being held throughout the state yesterday was certainly felt by every member who turned up to cast his or her vote.
It was particularly intense in Piasau, where former deputy chief minister and outgoing SUPP president Tan Sri Dr George Chan has decided not to defend his chairman’s post.
The branch saw Datuk Sebastian Ting, the political secretary to SUPP presidential candidate Datuk Seri Peter Chin, locking horns with Sibu-born Hii King Chiong, the managing director of Kingwood Hotel group.
After almost postponing the election of the branch chairman, when several newly elected committee members became absent, the remaining committee members — after a show of hands — decided to go on with it at about 11.40pm.
Ting garnered 23 votes after a secret ballot to defeat Hii by four votes. After the polls, Hii was nominated for the deputy chairman’s post but he declined the nomination.
Ting had also tried to persuade him to change his mind but failed. At midnight, it was decided that the new chairman be allowed to decide his own office-bearers. With the two presidential aspirants Chin and Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh winning uncontested as the chairmen of Bekenu and Sibu branches respectively yesterday, Piasau’s polls result became even more important in deciding who SUPP’s next president could be.
Chin and Wong will face off during the SUPP triennial delegates’ conference here on Dec 10 and 12 in what would be the ailing party’s watershed event.
In Kuching, Prof Dr Sim Kui Hian scored high to win the Pending branch chairman’s post despite an uproar earlier on involving the distribution of candidates’ list by those said to be allied to him.
Dr Sim, however, insisted after his victory, that he belonged to no team and was ready to work with anyone, while in nearby Kota Sentosa, Datuk Alfred Yap continues to rule the roost.
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