News coverage on the general election in East Malaysia

Sabah and Sarawak are considered as fixed deposits for BN. They will be the key states to watch in the election. This news tells about voters' sentiments in East Malaysia and the issues that affect them.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-04-29/barisan-nasional-spends-big-to-keep-key-seats/4658930

Najib and Anwar must now debate

Now that former prime minister Najib Razak and opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim have presented their campaign manifestoes. The next step is for both to step up and defend their respective policies in a healthy debate. Since Najib’s campaign approach is quite similar to the presidential style in the US, the former prime minister cannot afford not to duel in a debate with his fiercest and most formidable contender – Anwar. For those who say that debate is a waste of time miss one crucial point: the job of politicians is not just to represent the people but to defend their policies. Najib and Anwar must convince Malaysians that they have the best policies worth of defending. And there is no other way to do this than to outwit each other in a healthy debate.

If Najib refuses to debate, it only raises doubt of his capability in defending BN’s (Barisan Nasional) policies and challenging the alternatives provided by PR (Pakatan Rakyat). Contrary to what critics say, debating Anwar does not mean that Najib will commit a political suicide. True, Anwar is a good orator and a crowd puller. If Najib thinks that BN deserves another term and PR cannot make a good government, this is the opportunity for him to tell Malaysians that Anwar is all bark but no bite. But then again the only way to prove this is to see both aspiring prime minister to embark on the battle of the minds. Malaysians want a new prime minister who can articulate issues as well as having the brain to address them.

BN and PR will do disservice if Malaysians do not see the two most recognisable faces in the country’s political arena meeting face to face in a debate. At least one BN leader, Shabbery Chik, came to debate Anwar in 2008. This is a good start for Malaysia as it shows political maturity on the part of BN and PR. The debate has since become the talk of the town. Malaysians from all walks of life gave two thumbs up to the historic debate. In the end, it is not about who wins and who loses. An open debate will allow the public to assess to capability of their representatives to articulate issues and to recommend solutions to them. Presenting the manifestoes alone is not enough. In fact, it is pointless if the manifestoes are not scrutinised and criticised in a constructive and reasonable manner.

Sabahans' (new) dilemma

In 1994, Herman Luping in his seminal work, “Sabah’s dilemma”, wrote about the dilemma faced by Sabahans in maintaining state autonomy and independence under the Federation of Malaysia. Sabah leaders wanted to safeguard the state’s regional rights but the federal leaders viewed this as an attempt to override the power of the central government. Just as Sabahans are prepared to vote in the upcoming 13th Malaysian General Election, they are facing with a new kind of dilemma – which party to vote to rule Sabah for the next term. Sabahans have shown that they are capable of voting out a party that they dislike. A case in point is USNO (United Sabah National Organisation) in 1975. Despite USNO’s leader Mustapha Harun’s iron fist rule, Sabahans voted in unison to oust him from power. In 1985, Sabahans bravely voted against the mighty BERJAYA (Sabah People’s United Front) in favour of PBS (Sabah United Party). Back then, Sabahans had a clear choice: BERJAYA to replace USNO, and PBS as an alternative to BERJAYA. Now, despite the desire of Sabahans to see change in the political landscape of the country, they have to make a hard choice between the complacent Sabah BN whose leaders lack the tenacity to address the Sabah issues and the fractious opposition coalition led by PR (People’s Front) consisting of PKR (People’s Justice Party), DAP (Democratic Action Party), PAS (Pan Malaysian Islamic Party), and UBF (United Borneo Front) comprising STAR (State Reform Party) and SAPP (Sabah People’s Progressive Party).

In a survey conducted by Merdeka Centre, more than 70 percent of the respondents in Sabah were satisfied with the performance of Prime Minister Najib Razak. It is undeniable that Najib’s popularity is contributed by his transformational leadership style and his pragmatic policies (despite their many flaws). Unlike Najib, however, Sabah BN leaders lack pragmatism in addressing the Sabah issues. Not many Sabahans in the rural areas understand what Najib is trying to do. Sabah BN leaders seem to lack the fervour to materialise Najib’s transformational plan. Many Sabahans are also unhappy with the lackadaisical attitude of Sabah BN leaders in tackling the perennial illegal immigrant issue. Due to the inertia shown by BN, Sabahans have no choice but to look for the alternative. In 1999 and 2004, Sabahans rejected PKR as it was then a newcomer in Sabah politics. In 2008, Jeffrey Kitingan helped increase PKR’s popularity. Even though Jeffrey is known for his infamous reputation as “katak” (political frog), he managed to “re-package” the Borneo Agenda to rally Kadazandusun support for PKR. Despite PKR’s failure to win any seat, its popular votes increased substantially in most of the constituencies.

Now, PKR is back to woo Sabahans once again through a partnership with DAP and PAS in PR. PKR’s future in Peninsular Malaysia looks promising but it is a different story in Sabah. Lack of leadership, clashing personalities and infighting cause disarray in PR. Internal party conflict in PR has deteriorated further with the admission of APS (Sabah Coalition for Change) and PPS (Sabah People’s Front for Change) into PR. Wilfred Bumburing and Lajim Ukin who lead APS and PPS respectively have submitted their potential candidates to PR, much to the chagrin of the “original” members of the opposition coalition who regard the two former BN leaders as opportunists. The mudslinging between PR and the state-based opposition parties in UBF has weakened the opposition coalition in Sabah. STAR and SAPP have accused PR as having the agenda to “colonise” Sabah. They urge Sabahans to reject Peninsula-based parties as only Sabah-based parties can understand local sentiments better. Some Sabahans, however, have had enough of Jeffrey and SAPP’s leader Yong Teck Lee. They have been in politics for too long and have a lot of political baggage. Many still remember Jeffrey’s act of betrayal in 1994 in which he left his brother Joseph Pairin Kitingan, the founder of PBS, to form a new party. Partly because of Jeffrey’s action, Pairin had to relinquish his post as chief minister of Sabah. Yong was one of the ring leaders whom Pairin had accused of having the intention to oust him from power. Yong’s withdrawal from PBS had weakened the Chinese support in the party. So, just like Wilfred and Lajim, Jeffrey and Yong are also considered as opportunists and not real fighters for Sabah rights.

The fractious opposition coalition means that PR and UBF will contest against each other. Come nomination day, disgruntled members of the respective coalitions will file their candidacy to contest as independents. This will add colour to the electoral contest in Sabah as in 2004 and 2008. Nevertheless, the 13th general election will be different from the ones in 1975 and 1985 where Sabahans had a clear choice between the incumbent and the alternative party. The upcoming election will force Sabahans to choose between the devil and the deep blue sea.

Source: www.asiapacific.anu.edu.au

In search of the lost "tataba"

The tataba is a magic wand in the Dusun mythology. It is, however, no longer used by the Kadazandusuns in the modern times. It is lost in the mid of the advancement of the socio-cultural life of the Kadazandusuns. The Kadazandusuns are now looking for a different kind of tataba - one that propelled the Kadazandusuns to prominence in the early 1960s and 1980s. The elusive tataba that the Kadazandusuns have been looking after losing it in 1994 is the oft-repeated and over-used word, unity.

Recently, the three Kadazandusun-based parties in Sabah -- PBS (Parti Bersatu Sabah), UPKO (United Pasok Momogun Organisation) and PBRS (Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah) -- held a gathering at the famed KDCA (Kadazandusun Cultural Association) building in Penampang. The "misompuru" (unity meet) is widely seen as a symbolic event that rekindles the Kadazandusun nationalistic movement during the eras of Donald Stephens and Joseph Pairin Kitingan. Stephens formed UPKO in the early 1960s to represent the Kadazans at the height of the formation of Malaysia in 1963. Pairin formed PBS in 1985 as a response to BERJAYA's pro federal policies that caused the Kadazandusuns to lose their cultural significance.

In 1968, Stephens dissolved UPKO in the name of "indigenous unity" after failing to prevent UPKO's members from joining USNO (United Sabah National Organisation), a Muslim-based party led by Mustapha Harun. Stephens joined USNO with the remaining members of UPKO. This was generally regarded as the end of Kadazandusun preeminence. In 1985, the Kadazandusuns once again had the chance to exert their influence through PBS. Despite PBS's multiracial outlook, it was mainly a Kadazandusun-based party. Pairin who formed and led PBS was also (and still is) the Huguan Siou (paramount and brave leader) of the Kadazandusuns. At the same time, Pairin also led the KCA (Kadazan Cultural Association. Now Kadazandusun Cultural Association). This gave Pairin enourmous influence over the Kadazandusuns. Under Pairin, PBS won the successive state elections in 1986, 1990, and 1994. PBS was fighting along state issues and wanted the federal government to restore the Twenty Point memorandum and to give more recognition to the Malaysian Agreement 1963. Such strong regional overtones, however, irked the then Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad who regarded Pairin as a "dangerous" regional leader.

When PBS failed to force the federal government to accede to its demands, it left BN in 1990 at the elevant hour before nomination for the 1990 general election. This angered Mahathir who called Pairin's action as a "stab in the back". Sabah was under the opposition PBS until 1994. Despite PBS being democratically elected, it was treated indifferently by the federal government. Federal allocation was cut off substantially and Pairin, on a number of occasions, was even snubbed by federal officials despite his role as Sabah chief minister elect. By 1994, federal influence in Sabah became more pronounced with UMNO’s (United Malays National Organisation) entry into local politics. USNO was effectively dissolved and its members joined UMNO en masse. In the 1994 state election, PBS won once more with a razor-thin majority and formed the next government. But with only two-seat majority in the state legislative assembly, PBS failed to prevent its members from leaving the party. Two of Pairin's deputies and founding members of PBS Bernard Dompok and Joseph Kurup were also leaving PBS. With the massive exodus, PBS's nine-year rule ended abruptly. James Chin wrote that the fall of PBS in 1994 signifies the "end of Kadazan unity". After almost 12 years in the opposition, PBS returned to BN in 2002. There is no better explanation as to why PBS decided to be part of the ruling party once again other than its desire to survive. Since then, the Kadazandusuns are represented by PBS, UPKO and PBRS.

At the recent misompuru, Pairin, Dompok and Kurup saw eye to eye once again. The rendition of PBS's official anthem "bersatu" brought Pairin, Dompok and Kurup to the PBS's heyday in the 1980s. Dompok and Kurup, however, did not show any sign of regret in dithcing PBS. Pairin was neither apologetic about his failure to prevent his two deputies from leaving him. Obviously, the three Kadazandusun leaders did not use the misompuru to set a new vision to develop the Kadazandusuns. Kurup who was given the opportunity to talk first did not mince his words in saying that it is about time the Kadazandusun-based parties to unite after a long separation. Dompok who is seen as more vocal in championing the Kadazandusun cultural rights spoke at length about the illegal immigrant problems. He also suggested that the Malaysian ICs be re-issued so that only genuine Sabahans are recognised as citizens. Pairin was clearly not as combative as he used to in the 1980s. Reading from a prepared text, Pairin did not offer any new idea on the future direction of the Kadazandusuns.

Despite the "success" of the misompuru, Pairin, Dompok and Kurup have failed to convince the Kadazandusuns that they are willing to walk the talk in achieving real Kadazandusun unity. The misompuru is largely seen as an attempt to consolidate the Kadazandusun support in BN. In the past months or so, the Kadazandusuns have been quite unhappy with the failure of their leaders to speak up on issues such as the illegal immigrants, cultural rights of the Kadazandusuns, and under-representation of the Kadazandusuns in the state and federal service. BN is also wary of the split in Kadazandusun support after the formation of STAR Sabah led by Pairin's younger brother Jeffrey Kitingan. Not all Kadazandusuns support Jeffrey but he has a substantial number of loyal Kadazandusun supporters in the interior.

In the end, many Kadazandusuns were left disappointed despite the "historic" misompuru. PBS, UPKO and PBRS are set to remain as they are for the time being. There is no sign that either Pairin, Dompok or Kurup is willing to step down as president of their respective party, nor is there any indication that they are willing to form a single entity to represent the Kadazandusuns. For some people, Kadazandusun unity can only be achieved if Dompok and Kurup return to PBS. At the very least, many Kadazandusuns want the three Kadazandusun leaders to set aside their ego and to form a new entity led by young and progressive Kadazandusun blood. Otherwise, the Kadazandusuns will never (ever) find the lost tataba.