KUALA LUMPUR, June 22 — A great leader, a worthy foe.
Tributes and condolence messages poured in from both sides of the political divide today for DAP’s Bukit Assek assemblyman Wong Ho Leng who lost the battle with cancer yesterday, aged 54.
Bandar Kuching MP Chong Chieng Jen, who took over as Sarawak DAP chief last year after Wong fell ill, said under his predecessor’s leadership, the DAP won six state seats in 2006 and went on to double their tally to a dozen seats in the 2011 state election.
“He led our party to new heights in Sarawak,” Chong told The Malay Mail Online today.
He said Wong also fought for land issues as a lawyer and politician.
“He’s a great leader. He’s hands on, a person with integrity. He’s very sharp,” said Chong.
Nancy Shukri, de facto law minister from Sarawak’s anchor party PBB, called Wong a “good opposition leader”.
“My heartfelt condolence to families of DAP Wong Ho Leng for his demise,” she tweeted from her account @NancyShukri today.
Umno secretary-general and Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor also expressed his condolences.
“Rest in peace and may god bless his soul,” he tweeted from his account @TengkuAdnanReal.
DAP’s Lanang MP Alice Lau said the death of Wong — who had won the Sibu by-election in 2010 and became the first Pakatan Rakyat (PR) MP in Sarawak — was a great loss to people in Sibu and Malaysia.
“He was a great leader. He loved to joke at times and was serious when it came to serious matters. A man whom I can call a dedicated leader and a good friend,” Lau told The Malay Mail Online.
DAP national publicity chief Tony Pua said Wong was a disciplined and stern idealist who did not mince his words.
“He will be sorely missed as a moral compass not only for DAP Sarawak, but also for our top leadership,” Pua told The Malay Mail Online.
The Election Commission (EC) has said that no by-election will be held to fill in Wong’s vacancy with the next Sarawak polls expected to be called within the next two years.
