Taib, who is also the state Barisan Nasional chairman told a packed press conference at the Kuching International Airport on Saturday that he had an audience with the Yang Dipertua Negeri at Astana, in Kuching to seek his agreement to dissolve the assembly.
The Election Commission is expected to meet on Wednesday to decide on the nomination and polling dates.
At the same function, also attended by the prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak dan his deputy Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, he also commited himself to a smooth transition of power to a new team and confirmed that he planned to hand over power “somewhere in the mid-term”.
He made this commitment when he said that he is going to contest in the coming election.
Taib, 74, will celebrate his 30th anniversary as chief minister on Saturday. He is the longest serving chief minister in Malaysia. He has been in power since 1981.
Taib’s commitment to retire after the polls is best read as an election strategy to stem the opposition tide, especially on the urban seats, said an analysis.
The ninth state election held on May 20th, 2006 saw the Barisan Nasional (BN) captured 87% of the seats (61:72) and continues to dominate the state legislature.
To be more specific, the BN now holds 63 seats in the state assembly, with Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu Sarawak, led by Abdul Taib, having 35 seats, followed by the Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) 12 and Parti Rakyat Sarawak and Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) eight each.
Six of the remaining seats are held by the DAP while Parti Keadilan Rakyat and Parti Cinta Malaysia, through an independent, have one each.
However, the opposition managed to send shock waves by winning an unexpected 8 seats and 47.2% of the popular vote.
For the first time since the 1987 election, the opposition emerged as an important player in this state, long considered a stronghold for the incumbent BN.
The urban sentiment against Taib is very strong and he may have to spell out a more specific exit plan to appease the urban electorate, many of whom had made up their minds months ago, said an analysis.
The loss of the Sibu parliamentary seat by-election to DAP was a clear signal of the urban mood.
Since its independence through Malaysia in 1963, Sarawak has held a total of nine state elections, (1970, 1974, 1979, 1983, 1987, 1991, 1996, 2001, 2006).
As in the last election, there are 71 seats to be contested this time.
In 1996 the BN won 56 of the 62 seats (90.3%), winning 19 of these uncontested and 65.9% of the popular vote.
In 2001 the BN only lost one seat and won four uncontested, winning 61 (98.3%) of the seats and 71.9% of the popular vote.
BN dominance in Sarawak politics has comprised a coalition of parties, including the Malay/Melanau PBB led by the current chief minister Taib Mahmud, the SUPP, the state’s oldest party which formed in 1959 and is the main Chinese party, Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) which represents a combination of Iban and Chinese representatives, and the mainly Iban SPDP.
Parties have moved out of the governing coalition over the years, particularly Iban-based parties. The two most important Iban parties were the Sarawak National Party (SNAP), the first Iban-nationalist party formed in 1961 that is now in opposition and the Parti Bangsa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) founded in 1983 after a split from SNAP. PBDS did not contest in the 2006 polls since it was deregistered in October 2004.
All of these parties have been dominated by specific leaders and remain highly personalized. The most prominent figure in BN Sarawak politics has been chief minister Taib Mahmud.
However, according to an analysis : Taib’s political legacy is about to be tested in this coming election.
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