The admission of newly-registered Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) into the ruling state Barisan Nasional is considered a foregone conclusion.

Last week, the state BN supreme council, meeting a day after the de-registration of the Sarawak National Party (Snap), decided to allow the now party-less 10 elected representatives six state assemblypersons and four members of parliament to be parked temporarily among the three state component parties Parti Pesaka Bumiputra Bersatu (PBB), Sarawak United People's Party (Supp) and Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) to secure their positions within BN.

On Sunday, Supp chairperson George Chan Hong Nam told a political gathering in Samarahan near Kuching, that Supp had no problem with SPDP joining the BN.

SPDB was registered last Friday, three days after its application for registration was submitted to the Registrar of Societies in Kuala Lumpur.

William Mawan anak Ikoh (photo, left), 53, a vice president of the now-defunct Snap elected in August by his faction supporters as the party's president replacing the beleaguered president James Wong Kim Min, is widely expected to lead the new party. He is also the state minister of public health and environment.

Backing from PBDS

PBDS deputy president Daniel Tajem told malaysiakini today that the party's supreme council meeting this weekend would endorse the decisions taken at last week's BN supreme council meeting to accept thetemporary parking of the displaced elected representatives.

"We have to officially endorse our party's agreement to the BN principles and policy on the matter," he said, adding that the party would also endorse its stand on SPDP's application when it is made to join the BN.

The PBDS supreme council meeting will be held on Saturday (Nov 16) at the party headquarters in Kuching. It will be chaired by party president and Federal Minister of Energy, Telecommunications and Multimedia Leo Moggie (photo, left).

Meanwhile, the federal BN secretary-general Mohamad Rahmat was quoted by national newspapers yesterday as saying that once SPDP is admitted into the state BN, it will automatically be endorsed by the federal BN.

Former Snap president James Wong Kim Min and his secretary-general Justine Jinggut appeared to have resigned to their new fate, to allow Snap to remain buried.

In reports quoted widely in local newspapers, both men indicated their changing stance, giving the impression that they might forget about appealing to Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and the High Court against the ROS' decision.