Who will the Suluks support?

By Luke Rintod of FMT
Sabah Umno leaders do not believe that the Suluk voters in Sabah have deserted them following the Tanduo stand-off in Lahad Datu between Sulu terrorists and Malaysian armed forces.
“The majority of the Suluk voters are still with BN (Barisan Nasional),” said Nizam Abu Bakar Titingan, the principal political secretary to Sabah strongman, Musa Aman.
Many in the BN component parties like PBS, UPKO, LDP, PBRS and MCA share Nizam’s observation.
But deep within the Suluk community in Sabah, cracks are appearing.
If you talk to the ordinary Suluk men, the majority would still say they are “with the government”. And their leaders, in NGOs, too are issuing statements supporting the establishment.
The question now is can these Suluk supporters of BN be trusted.
Remember the Tanduo incident when the armed Sulu terrorists from the Philippines hoisted a white flag signaling a surrender or peace?
But while the white flag was hoisted, the Sulu terrorists shot dead two Malaysian armed forces.
Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said our men were tricked.
In which case could it be that the Suluk community is once again sending a decoy to BN, to eventually surprise them by a swing in the Suluk votes?
Not so safe now
Observers here observed that “even a small swing” in support from the community in some of the eastern coast seats could be a nightmare to some Umno candidates.
The Lahad Datu and Tungku state seats and Silam parliamentary constituency (where Tanduo is) have consistently registered a huge dissenting votes against BN in previous elections.
In the 2008 general election, the Lahad Datu state seat was won by Umno’s Nasrun Mansur in a straight fight with PKR candidate, Zainuddin Zulkarnain.
Nasrun chalked up 8,034 votes against Zainuddin’s 4,976.
Now five years later, observers note that support for the opposition had further increased.
And now with the additional likely swing in Suluk votes, it’s going to be a close fight especially if it is a one-to-one battle.
In adjacent Tungku, also under the Silam parliamentary seat, and where the Tanduo action was, the situation is similar.
Here too in 2008 the dissenting voices were strong.
Umno’s Suhaili Said won the seat for BN with a 4,828 votes but there were a substantial 2,446 votes that went to PKR’s Jamal Sulai and another 164 votes for an independent.
A slight shift in Suluk support here towards PKR could tilt the balance to a 50-50 or 45-55 situation, with Umno having only the slightest advantage.
PAS, Anwar gaining ground
Local observers said that if there is a 30% or more shift in the Suluk and Badjao communities, then BN is in for a run of its money in east coast.
But Umno has never been more strong in the east coast than now.
With financially powerful Badjao leader like Shafie Apdal from nearby Semporna, Lahad Datu and Tungku and Silam parliamentary seats could well be within BN’s so-called fixed-deposit areas.
With about RM6 billion annual development fund under his control in the federal Rural Development Ministry, Shafie is in pole position to influence the politics in Sabah’s east coast.
Shafie is an Umno vice-president and cannot afford to fail Umno in Sabah. If he falters in delivering seats to BN, then it would be the end of his political journey for him too.
However, much to the dislike of Shafie and Sabah Umno, not all Suluk groups look up to or listen to the party anymore.
They now have an alternative in PAS and the charismatic Anwar Ibrahim-led PKR.
Both are known sympathisers of the Muslim community. And there is Usco (United Suluk Community Organisation).
The youthful NGO has planned to put up election candidates against BN and Pakatan at the coming polls.
Usco and Usno
Usco president, Bentan Alamin, recently announced Usco’s intention to stand in areas that have substantial Suluk voters.
Though the Suluks are mainly found in islands and coastline, many of them have settled around cities like Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan.
They are mainly fishermen, construction labourers, petty traders, street peddlars but many also have joined other sectors including the public service.
Among the areas Usco is aiming for are Banggi and Tanjung Kapur in Kudat, Karambunai, Likas, Tanjung Aru and Sepanggar in the west coast and Sandakan.
Young Bentan said that the decision to participate in the election was made at Usco’s third annual general meeting which called for the body to put up its young leaders as election candidates as “a starting point for Usco to be in politics”.
Usno, another NGO, is led by Badaruddin, son of the most famous Suluk-Bajau leader ever, Mustapha Harun. This group is eyeing at least two seats in the east coast, most likely Bugaya and Senallang or Sulabayan.
Badaruddin is aligned to Jeffrey Kitingan of State Reform Party (STAR), another sign of the emerging importance of aligning oneself to the potentially-powerful Suluk-Bajau politics in Sabah.
There are signs that other seats in Sandakan, Lahad Datu and Tawau – where state opposition parties Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) and STAR have little clout – would be left entirely to PKR-PAS-DAP to tussle it with BN-Umno.
These tussles will be worth watching. Already the situation is beginning to unfold.
Again in this pivotal polls, the question arises: who will the Suluk community look up to as its leader?
Will it be Najib or Anwar?

6 comments:

  1. The Suluks and Badjaos should be able to distinguish good and bad. Hope Anwar and Najib slug it out between them to get these people's votes .. Last time Najib took them for granted, now no more...Anwar go get them !

    ReplyDelete

  2. SULUKS MUST REJECT BEING UMNO'S PAWNS IN ITS POWER GAME & VOTE FOR SABAH OPPOSITION.

    If Suluks are loyal to Sabah they must cut loose any false hopes that hanging on to Malayan snake oil salesmen promises would really help them gain a better life in Sabah. How could they when Sabah people have to endure Sabah's undesired status of being the poorest state in Malaysia?

    The Sulu “Sabah claim” questions whether Sabah is a legitimate part of Malaysia and more importantly whether the Sabah people have real self-determination.

    If a local decision to change bus routes has to be approved by Kuala Lumpur or a fire alarm call has to be routed through Kuala Lumpur, Sabahans must ask has 'self-determination” come to mean just “foreign control” under a foreign proxy local government.

    Further when in history did Sabah have anything to do with Malaya?

    So why be slavish to a ruler which has been robbing and vandalising Sabah wealth land and environment?

    Sabah more than Sarawak have inspired leaders who have offered a program to take back Sabah for Sabahans.

    The Suluks if they wish to join this trend of taking back Sabah must make up their minds and throw in their lot with all other Sabahans.

    To do otherwise is to continue as pawns in UMNO's selfish power game which is not to enrich the people with good transparent governance or proper and fair development but for its own self-enrichment and power.

    UMNO PROMISE OF ESSCOM NEW HOUSING

    It is important that Suluks not be fooled by UMNO's ESSCOM promise of “new housing”.

    ESSCOM is modelled on Malaya's infamous “new villages” replicated in Sarawak's RASCOM Rejang areas (also an idea used by the British and Israelis in Palestine). The RASCOM was like the Malayan Emergency a form of emergency rule over the designated areas.

    “New Villages” were no more than concentration camps to control people the UMNO government suspected as enemies. In the Suluks' case the BSRA have branded as terrorist group. So it does not leave much to imagination that Suluks are not under suspicions and must be controlled.

    The coming elections must be decided on whether everyone who can legitimately vote in Sabah wish to get rid of UMNO domination and abusive misgovernment.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes yes i fully agree, we Suluks are not stupid people. This time lah ! WE teach Umno a lesson. They will be surprised this time. WE Suluks want change, want SABAH to be treated as equal partner as it was agreed and assured by Tunku Abdul Rahman and Najib's father Tun Razak.

      We have enough of Umno and their politics of enslaving people of Sabah.

      VOTE FOR PAKATAN !

      Delete
    2. GOOD ON YOU BROTHER! TIME FOR CHANGE

      BUT VOTE SABAHAN PARTIES

      STICKING WITH MALAYA MEANS WE REMAIN THEIR SLAVES TO KEEP THEIR DOMINATION OVER US.

      SABAH 4 SABAHANS!

      Delete


  3. TUKAR TUKAR TUKAR..

    UBAH UBAH UBAH !

    Berhenti undi BN, selkarang undilah Pakatan Rakyat PKR PAS atau DAP ! Ini Kali Lah Tukar !

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hidup BN.tatap BN dulu kini dan selamanya

    ReplyDelete