Sabah The Next To fall?

By GM, Penampang, Sabah.

With the next General Elections looming, Pakatan Rakyat Penampang has shifted its efforts to capture Sabah into overdrive. Spearheading the campaign to topple the ruling elite is PKR Penampang’s information chief Mr. Honorsius Bosuin. Now that the storm has settled in PKR, members are stepping up their efforts to win back public support that was damaged by the alleged PKR election frauds, the exit of Zaid Ibrahim, as well as the Dr. Jeffrey saga.

It cannot be denied that Dr. Jeffrey’s departure has left an impact on PKR/Pakatan Rakyat Sabah; however, I would agree that the impact is minimal as mentioned by YB Saifuddin Nasution. Word on the ground is that people have been wary of Dr. Jeffrey and have anticipated that what happened was coming as he cannot stay in a political party for long and history has repeatedly proven this. We wish him and the United Borneo Front (UBF) all the best in their future struggles.

That aside, the focus now is to win the support of the fence sitters and to register as many new voters as possible. Many potential voters out there are not happy with the way the State and Country as a whole is managed. There are too many white elephant projects in Malaysia sitting idle which the whole idea to implement them in the first place was to give a source of income to crony contractors.

If the Government has the millions to throw around on projects that bring no benefits for the people and the economy of the country, but are instead carried out with the intention to keep their cronies happy by giving them jobs, why not use the funds that we have to improve the lives of the hardcore poor in the interior areas of Sabah? There are unsealed roads in Ranau that have been waiting to be done since the past State Governments and they are still impassable even by four wheel drive vehicles.

Instead of using the country’s wealth to build mega structures like the proposed Menara Warisan, it would only be right to focus more on the basic facilities such as water and electricity for the rakyat first. Many areas in Sabah and Sarawak have long been denied their right to enjoy the luxury of clean tap water. Talking about water, the rakyat in Selangor enjoy free tap water thanks to the State Government which is headed by PKR while most of the interior folks in Sabah and Sarawak depend on rain water or river water to meet their daily needs.

PKR Penampang, headed by its Chief Darrel Leiking and Information Chief Honorsius Bosuin are doing a great job so far in reaching out to the needs of the people by highlighting them in the local dailies in order for the relevant authorities to act. Issues like the burnt fruit and vegetable market in the Donggongon Township is still awaiting the repairs promised. They have also raised issues on clogged drains that bring about flash floods to major areas in the Penampang district. These efforts must be consistent, and if Pakatan Rakyat does make inroads in Sabah and Sarawak, the promises must be delivered.

The Penampang Parliament seat is one of the jewels in the crown for Sabah, in which the Kadazandusuns form the majority. This is one seat that the BN cannot afford to lose and a seat that Pakatan Rakyat must try to capture. To unseat the current MP for Penampang will be a mammoth task but it is never impossible. The next general election could spell a great upset for the ruling coalition in Sabah if we continue to work hard in convincing the voters why Pakatan Rakyat should be given a chance to rule.

SAPP which is a local based party has yet to decide whether or not to join forces with Pakatan Rakyat. What we need to do now is to minimize the chances of splitting the opposition votes. Politics aside, if the opposition parties and leaders are really serious in championing the rights of the people, they must unite. Once the elections are over and the results show a reflection of the past, finger pointing and mudslinging among the opposition parties will be no use for another good 5 years. The worst thing that could happen should a second opposition tsunami strike (like in 2008) will be the defection of an exodus of BN MPs and Assemblymen to Pakatan Rakyat. This is truly unhealthy politics and it must not be encouraged nor practiced by Pakatan Rakyat.

Like what RPK has been harping about, the 3rd force is not new and is not being instigated. Without realizing it, the 3rd force has been around for a while but it is only gaining momentum now and making its presence felt. The battle for Sabah has begun; Pakatan Rakyat is in top gear having recovered from major setbacks. A majority of youths in Sabah are opposition hardcore and we need to pull them to our side to be a part of something big, which is the change of the Federal and State Government of Sabah. Penampang will spearhead Sabah to achieve the dream of reaching Putrajaya come the elections.

Reformasi!!!