Seven months after it applied for registration, the pro-tem Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC) has yet to hear from the Registrar of Societies (ROS).

Sarawak DAP deputy chairperson Chong Chieng Jen, who intervened in his capacity as MP for Bandar Kuching, said the home ministry attributed the delay to "technical problems" when he raised the issue in Parliament on Monday.

Chong said his persistence in seeking elaboration has yet to pay off.

"I asked not less than five times Apakah masalahnya ? and Apakah problemnya ?, but did not get a reply to this or when the application would be approved," he said.

MDC comprises a group of Dayaks led by Sarawak Dayak National Union (SNDU) president Nicholas Bawin.

He is the pro-tem chairperson and, in the forthcoming state election, is expected to challenge the Barisan Nasional (BN) in Batang Ai where the incumbent is state assistant minister Dublin Unting of Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS).

'Most unusual'

Chong said the long delay was "most unusual" in view of the fact that the Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party was approved three days after its application was sent to the ROS.

Similarly, PRS was approved the same day its predecessor, Parti Bangsa Dayak Sarawak was de-registered.

'I even put to the (Home Ministry) parliamentary secretary that the delay was due to the Sarawak BN's fear that the new party could pose a threat in the elections, and that the state BN leaders had instructed that registration should not be approved before then," he said in a statement.

'To this, the parliamentary secretary made no denial, but said that there are some technical problems without giving any details."

Chong further said the ROS should not operate "to suit the will of BN leaders".

In July, the ROS told reporters in Sarawak that "registration of a political party normally takes more than a month to approve because this has to go through security vetting by another department...but the whole process will not take more than four months from the date the application is submitted".

Candidates proposed by MDC will contest on the Sarawak National Party ticket if registration is not approved before the state election. It is likely to field about 30 candidates in predominantly Dayak areas.