KUCHING: DAPSY Sarawak Secretary George Lam has urged for fair and proportional representation for all communities in the upcoming Sarawak constituency redelineation.
In a statement today, Lam highlighted that the Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP), a component party in the ruling coalition, should advocate for more Chinese-majority constituencies instead of attributing the issue to a declining Chinese population ratio.
“While demographic trends are a factor to consider, they should not prevent any political party from ensuring equitable representation for all communities,” Lam said.
He noted that the Sarawak Legislative Assembly recently passed the Sarawak (Composition of Members of the Legislative Assembly) Bill 2025, increasing the number of seats from 82 to 99.
Once parliamentary approval is obtained, the Election Commission will begin the next round of constituency delimitation.
“According to publicly circulating lists, SUPP is expected to receive only three of the 17 new seats — roughly 17 percent of the total. Yet the Chinese community makes up about 23 percent of Sarawak’s population, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia 2024 projection,” Lam explained.
“A fair and democratic redelineation should reflect this proportion.”
Lam also called on the government to prioritize urban areas such as Kuching, Stampin, Sibu, Lanang, Bintulu, and Miri to ensure effective representation for densely populated constituencies.
He said that all communities, Chinese and Bumiputera alike must have fair representation in the legislature to uphold Sarawak’s multiracial progress.
“Constituency redelineation should be guided by the principles of population proportion and representative fairness. This is crucial to ensure that every community’s voice is heard and that the state assembly truly reflects Sarawak’s diverse population,” Lam said.
By Connie Chieng