Former deputy education minister Salleh Jafaruddin today announced that he will be contesting as an Independent against Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud in the Balingian seat.

This will be the first time that Taib, who has been in power for three decades, is facing a political heavyweight in the state polls.

azlan Taib, 75, has served in Balingian for two terms. Before that, he was the Asajaya state representative.

Balingian is expected to see a three-cornered fight at the April 16 polls, with PKR fielding businesswoman Suriati Abdullah, 50.

However, Malaysiakini has learnt that Salleh’s supporters are requesting PKR to drop Suriati in favour of a single opposition candidate against Taib.

Salleh, 67, who is Taib's second cousin, had told Malaysiakini in an exclusive interview last year that he planned to make a comeback in Sarawak politics.

“I am fighting the big man,” he told a press conference at the Kuching airport before leaving for Balingian.

Salleh is one four candidates backed by independent NGO Movement for Change Sarawak (MoCS).

In 2006, Taib won Balingian with a whopping majority of 5,726 votes, defeating PKR’s Ibrahim Bayau, who could only garner 667 votes.

Salleh - a former assemblyperson for Balingian and MP for Mukah in the 1970s and 1980s - declined to reveal  which platform he would use to make his electoral comeback.

"You will see me tomorrow (at the nomination centre)," he said, he said referring to nomination day tomorrow.  

Some had earlier speculated that Salleh could be contesting on a Snap ticket.

However, he later denied such claims, describing himself as an "old man", who could not be active in politics as "everybody wants to remove old politicians".

Second Salleh-Taib meeting in two years

Salleh said the nomination day will be the second time in as many years he will be meeting Taib. The first was when Taib’s wife, Laila, died in 2009.

“This time, when we meet again tomorrow, either he will carry my body or I carry his. We will get the rakyat to decide. Balingian will be our burial ground,” he said.

azlan Asked on the prospect of him beating Taib in Balingian, Salleh said he will leave it to the voters to decide.

“If the people want corruption to continue, and if they want their land behind Balingian town to be taken by his sister Raziah and her crony companies, then vote Taib.

“If they do not want, then they must vote me,” he said.

“I am from Balingian, but he (Taib) is not. I want to die from where I come from. I want to be buried in my hometown where I was born.

On the native customary rights (NCR) land grab by Raziah and her companies, Salleh said he had once been asked to be a broker to sell her lands which she had grabbed from the natives in Balingian.

Salleh said Raziah and her husband, Robert Geneid, are known to the locals there as the two ‘Racuns’, arising out of the letter ‘R’, because of their reputation as land grabbers in both Balingian and nearby Mukah, which is Taib’s ancestral home.

“No, I said to the locals, they are the ‘Rolls Royces’,” he said, referring to their wealthy status.

He said he had evidence that Raziah and her husband had taken the NCR lands from the people there.

“I will distribute documents during the campaign to prove that they have taken the lands,” he insisted. 

Salleh picks 'Three Keys' symbol

Meanwhile, MoCS leader Francis Siah, who was also present at the press conference, said that his movement has been preparing Salleh to take on Taib for the past eight months.

"We know we need a personality of Salleh's calibre to pose a strong challenge against the CM. There is no point in fielding a candidate who can only put up a token fight. The opposition has to be serious about this and MoCS is serious about its mission to oust Taib.

NONE "This morning, I appealed to Sarawak PKR chairman Baru Bian to withdraw his party's candidate in Balingian and asked PKR to back Salleh. MoCS and PKR are fighting on the same platform and has the same agenda for change," said Siah ( far right ).

"I believe that Sarawak PKR will understand MoCS' request as our two groups have a close working relationship.

"MoCS's stand is this. If political parties cannot put up winnable candidates in certain constituencies, then allow other concerned citizen groups to do so.

"Today, Salleh Jafaruddin will lead the MoCS Alliance of Independents into the state elections. All candidates contesting under this alliance will use the 'Three Keys' symbol," Siah declared.

Another former deputy education minister Bujang Ulis, who was also present, appealed to the people of Balingian to support Salleh whom he described as his mentor and a man ready to help change Sarawak for the better.

Ex-S'wak strongman Salleh ready to join fray