THE creation of additional state and parliamentary seats in Sarawak would only burden taxpayers and not benefit society if the representatives did not serve their constituents effectively, Rise of Social Efforts Sarawak (ROSE) said.
A civil society body, ROSE said the redelineation of electoral boundaries to create new constituencies being carried out now must bring about progress.
Otherwise, it would be a futile exercise that only makes politicians happy.
ROSE president and co-founder Ann Teo said if the redelineation exercise was merely to create additional state and parliamentary seats, the financial burden would be on ratepayers.
“The benefit to society will only come about if the elected YBs (lawmakers) are effective in tackling the problems of the rakyat,” she said.
“Even now, the Sarawak assembly sits for only 16 days a year,” she said at a talk during the Human Rights Day celebration in Kuching.
“How effective is that avenue to highlight and resolve the issues of the rakyat?”
Teo said creating new seats, whether at the state or parliamentary level, does not mean better representation for voters.
She said even now, with 31 parliamentary and 82 state constituencies in Sarawak, there are rural areas sparsely populated and overpopulated urban areas.
“With the new automatic registration of voters in place, Sarawak will have 1.9 million voters,” she said, noting the state had 833,940 voters in the last electoral roll.
“The new seats to be created must give better representation to voters based on the population’s needs,” she said.
ROSE was among 15 civil society groups fighting for better human rights and the rights of vulnerable communities in Sarawak.
The event was held at the La Promenade Shopping Mall in the city to enable the public to be involved in the commemoration.
The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia and Sarawak Aids Concern Society were among the advocacy groups that held exhibitions, talks and dialogues at the event.
Among the topics of concern that were highlighted were child abuse, human trafficking, the redelineation of electoral boundaries, and the rights of vulnerable groups.
Human Rights Day commemorates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on December 10, 1948. – The Vibes, December 11, 2023.
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