Kadazandusun swing negated by multi-cornered fights
Aidila RazakPublished: May 6, 2013 5:03 PM | Updated: May 6, 2013 6:32 PM
ANALYSIS Although contributing only three parliamentary seat to Pakatan Rakyat's bid to unseat BN, voting patterns in Sabah could be setting the stage for a keen battle in the 14th general election.
Key to this hypothesis is the evident shift of Kadazandusun Murut votes away from the BN, which could have resulted in a switch in four parliamentary seats had it not been for multi-corner fights.
ANALYSIS Although contributing only three parliamentary seats to Pakatan Rakyat's bid to unseat BN, voting patterns in Sabah could be setting the stage for a keen battle in the 14th general election.
Key to this hypothesis is the evident shift of Kadazandusun Murut votes away from the BN, which could have resulted in a switch in four parliamentary seats had it not been for multi-corner fights.
The biggest indicator of the shift in Kadazandusun Murut votes was the tremendous win for PKR's Iganatius Dorell Leiking, better known as Darell Leiking, in Penampang.
Penampang, which is close to the Kota Kinabalu city centre, is a symbolic seat for the Kadazandusun Murut community as it home to the Kadazandusun Murut Cultural Association and has produced key community leaders.
But Leiking's sucess in slaying veteran politician and Upko president Bernard Dompok (right) by more than 10,000 votes show that there is much unhappiness with the old guard.
Although the urban factor - Penampang is made up by many youth professional voters - explains part of the win, the swing away from BN within the Kadazandusun Murut community also appears in more rural areas.
PKR candidates won in the state seats of Kadamaian and Matunggong, rural areas on the northern part of the Sabah west coast, where access to running water is still an issue.
Kadamaian is further indicative of the largely Christian Kadasandusun Murut swing, as it is located within the Kota Belud parliamentary constituency.
In the parliamentary seat, plus the state seats of Usukan and Tempasuk, voters who are mainly Muslim bumiputeras, backed BN candidates, suggesting religion as a factor.
The ban on the use of the word ‘Allah’ by non-Muslims may not apply in Sabah, but the way the issue has been played up in the peninsula has affected voters in the ‘Land below the wind’.
The silence over a threat by BN-friendly parties to burn the Malay-language Bible using ‘Allah’ may have also prompted previously non-partisan entities like the church to influence votes against the BN.
The effect evident in Kota Marudu, where Matunggong is located, could have also slipped out of BN's Maximus Ongkili's (left) hands had it not been for multi-corner fights involving Star and to a smaller extent SAPP.
Multi-corner fights also prevented the fall of Kadazandusun Murut paramount leader, or Huguan Siou, Joseph Pairin Kitingan in Keningau, which he won with a reduced majority.
The same can be said for PBRS president Joseph Kurup's seat of Pensiangan, whose 9,467 votes could have been eclipsed by the 11,429 votes which went to PKR, Star and an Independent candidate.
Similar patterns of Kadazandusun Murut dissent are also seen in Tenom and Ranau, where the PKR's Jonathan Yassin has boosted his vote-bank by about 3,000 compared to 2008.
Umno in Sabah, which won all the seats it contested is as strong as ever, and contest by the Lajim Ukin-led APS, in cooperation with PKR, is not yet making a dent.
But the Kadazandusun parties of Upko, PBS and PBRS are fatigued, aged and are not inspiring confidence that they are defending community interests.
If the Sabah BN government does not address the grouses of the Kadazandusun Murut community by the next polls, five parliamentary seats will hang in the balance.
Key to this hypothesis is the evident shift of Kadazandusun Murut votes away from the BN, which could have resulted in a switch in four parliamentary seats had it not been for multi-corner fights.
The biggest indicator of the shift in Kadazandusun Murut votes was the tremendous win for PKR's Iganatius Dorell Leiking, better known as Darell Leiking, in Penampang.
Penampang, which is close to the Kota Kinabalu city centre, is a symbolic seat for the Kadazandusun Murut community as it home to the Kadazandusun Murut Cultural Association and has produced key community leaders.But Leiking's sucess in slaying veteran politician and Upko president Bernard Dompok (right) by more than 10,000 votes show that there is much unhappiness with the old guard.
Although the urban factor - Penampang is made up by many youth professional voters - explains part of the win, the swing away from BN within the Kadazandusun Murut community also appears in more rural areas.
PKR candidates won in the state seats of Kadamaian and Matunggong, rural areas on the northern part of the Sabah west coast, where access to running water is still an issue.
Kadamaian is further indicative of the largely Christian Kadasandusun Murut swing, as it is located within the Kota Belud parliamentary constituency.
In the parliamentary seat, plus the state seats of Usukan and Tempasuk, voters who are mainly Muslim bumiputeras, backed BN candidates, suggesting religion as a factor.
The ban on the use of the word ‘Allah’ by non-Muslims may not apply in Sabah, but the way the issue has been played up in the peninsula has affected voters in the ‘Land below the wind’.
The silence over a threat by BN-friendly parties to burn the Malay-language Bible using ‘Allah’ may have also prompted previously non-partisan entities like the church to influence votes against the BN.The effect evident in Kota Marudu, where Matunggong is located, could have also slipped out of BN's Maximus Ongkili's (left) hands had it not been for multi-corner fights involving Star and to a smaller extent SAPP.
Multi-corner fights also prevented the fall of Kadazandusun Murut paramount leader, or Huguan Siou, Joseph Pairin Kitingan in Keningau, which he won with a reduced majority.
The same can be said for PBRS president Joseph Kurup's seat of Pensiangan, whose 9,467 votes could have been eclipsed by the 11,429 votes which went to PKR, Star and an Independent candidate.
Similar patterns of Kadazandusun Murut dissent are also seen in Tenom and Ranau, where the PKR's Jonathan Yassin has boosted his vote-bank by about 3,000 compared to 2008.Umno in Sabah, which won all the seats it contested is as strong as ever, and contest by the Lajim Ukin-led APS, in cooperation with PKR, is not yet making a dent.
But the Kadazandusun parties of Upko, PBS and PBRS are fatigued, aged and are not inspiring confidence that they are defending community interests.
If the Sabah BN government does not address the grouses of the Kadazandusun Murut community by the next polls, five parliamentary seats will hang in the balance.
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