BETONG: The Election Commission's (EC) statement that there is no proposal to add Sarawak parliamentary constituencies at present does not contradict the Federal Government's agreement in principle to increase representation for Sabah and Sarawak in Parliament.

Sarawak Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri (Dr) Abang Abdul Rahman Zohari Tun Datuk Abang Openg said any addition of seats must go through the established process and procedures, including amendments to the Federal Constitution and parliamentary approval, before redelineation can be carried out.

He said the number of seats to be added is also still subject to the Federal Government's decision.

"If seats are to be added, how many is up to the government, because it involves Parliament.

"After that, it must first be brought to Parliament before subsequent processes such as gazetting and redrawing of boundaries can be carried out," he said.

He said this when met by the media after officiating the Sarawakku Sayang (SKS) Betong Division Programme at Betong Sports Complex on Saturday.

Elaborating further, the Sarawak Premier said the redelineation process also involves the display of proposed boundaries to allow stakeholders to raise objections before the process proceeds.

He said the EC's statement that it had not yet received a proposal to add seats is consistent with the current position, given that the official process on the matter has not yet begun.

"The EC Chairman said he has not received it because there simply isn't one yet — the process has not started.

"Once the process gets underway, then the matter will be carried out according to the established procedure," he said.

On 25 September, the EC announced that there is no proposal to add Sarawak parliamentary constituencies at present, with only the 7th Sarawak State Delineation Review recommendations currently being displayed to the public until 30 September 2026.

Previously, on 11 September, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the Federal Government had agreed in principle to increase representation for Sabah and Sarawak in Parliament, with the mechanism and number of seats still requiring further discussion. -UKASnews

Prepared by: Gabriel Rommy
Photos: Rais Sanusi
Translator: Uilson Ng