SARAWAK POLLS | Every evening, dozens of youths will crowd around the Sibu Active Youth Space, a park on the banks of the Rajang River and host to the only official skatepark in the city.
This park was completed last month. When met at the skatepark, several youths noted that it was the largest in Sarawak and credited the work to incumbent Nangka assemblyperson Annuar Rapaee.
Mohamad Nazeem, 21, said prior to the skatepark being built, skaters across the city congregated at five-foot ways or on the streets, which was dangerous.
Mohamad said Annuar approached skateboarders in 2018 to talk before embarking on the skatepark project.
"GPS will win because Annuar gave us a skatepark," he said.
Fellow skater Nazari Muhd Yusuf, 28, admits he doesn't know much about politics, but notes that Annuar is visible and approachable.
"You'll sometimes see him jogging in Kampung Hilir. Occasionally, he drops by the skatepark," said Nazari.
Based on a cursory look at Annuar's social media campaign material, it is clear that targeting the youth vote was a priority and that he was the proponent of the skatepark.
There are five state legislative assembly constituencies in Sibu of which Nangka has the highest percentage of voters aged between 21 and 39 (49 percent of 21,011 voters).
Immediately after campaigning started, Annuar's supporters, known as Rumpun Pewaris Sibu, held online forums for 10 days straight to discuss youth issues. Among others, scholarship recipients were asked to share their experiences.
Broadened campaign scope
The Nangka constituents are primarily Malay and Melanau (50 percent), followed by Chinese and non-Muslim bumiputera (24 percent). In 2016, Annuar won by a landslide, garnering 77.6 percent of the votes cast.
For this election, Annuar is canvassing the Chinese vote as well. When granting an interview to Sin Chew Daily, Annuar had his mother in tow. His mother spoke fluent Foo Chow, the main Chinese dialect spoken in Sibu, and he too had picked up some of the dialect.
He has been spotted campaigning alongside Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) colleagues in Sarawak United Peoples' Party (SuPP) in Chinese areas, distributing his material written completely in Chinese.
He has also recruited ex-DAP figure and ex-Padungan assemblyperson Wong King Wei to join his campaign.
The Chinese version of Annuar's manifesto had urged the Chinese community to give him a chance and promised to speak up for them.
Among others, Annuar said that as the chairperson of state government-owned University of Technology Sarawak, he had convinced the government to expand the bursary scheme, that covers 80 percent of tuition fees, to 100 non-bumiputera students, matching the same scheme for 100 bumiputera students.
He also hosted an online Christmas concert.
The flavour to Annuar's campaign was different compared to the 2016 election. At the time, Annuar was criticised for telling his constituents that Muslims, despite being a minority in Sarawak, have been given the opportunity to lead the state, and this should not be squandered.
Muslims are the minority in Sarawak but have occupied the chief minister's position since 1970.
David vs Goliath
While Annuar, 58, is banking heavily on his youth-centric campaign, his young challenger is also targeting the youth bank.
Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) is fielding political novice and contractor Intanurazean Wan Sapuan Daud, age 26.
Coincidentally, Intanurazean was once part of Annuar's team in the skatepark project and is also banking on the youth vote.
According to Intanurazean, Annuar had also proposed a motorcycle race track for the youths, but that proposal did not go through.
When met by Malaysiakini on Wednesday, Intanurazean said she has been campaigning in the 34 longhouses in Nangka, noting that the main problems are poor road conditions and lack of transportation for the people going to town to buy their necessities - problems that she will address if elected.
She added that the inadequate street lamps and waste collections in Nangka area were other issues that she was concerned about.
Intanurazean believed she had a 50-50 chance of winning, while noting that one of her biggest challenges was convincing the early voters, mostly from the armed forces, to vote for her.
The early voters make up around 10 percent of the electorate in Nangka - where the Sibu Central Prison and Rascom Army Camp are located.
When canvassing for their votes, Intanurazean said she felt that she was being questioned because of her age and gender.
"Perhaps they are wondering if I am qualified to look after their rights," she said.
Intanurazen believed that women have a place in politics and can even be better decision-makers. She pointed to the fact that as a contractor, she was accustomed to dealing with men and solving problems.
However, as a greenhorn, locals believe Intanurazean is a long shot. Fruit seller Emma, 33, who hails from Kampung Hilir where Intanurazean grew up, sees the PSB candidate as someone who is polite but inexperienced.
"It's harder for a new person to win. If she had been campaigning longer, she might win. She's a nice person. She cares about us, but she is new," said Emma.
One voter who wished to be known only as Khairul, 39, said his impression of Intanurazean was that she only started campaigning when the election was near.
"A potential candidate needs to start providing services last year and not only now," he said. - Mkini
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