KOTA KINABALU:The Sabah state election is on the horizon and legacy issues such as water and power shortages are expected to crop up to put the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS)-PH Plus government in a bad light.
And, despite very little voter discontent, opposition desperadoes will stop at nothing including taking wild potshots at the government led by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Hajiji Haji Noor.
“That’s their way to get voters’ attention and garner support,” says Sabah Economic Advisory Council (SEAC) member, Datuk Clarence Bongkos Malakun.
He adds that the recent allegations of bribery involving several elected representatives could be another desperate attempt to put paid the current coalition government’s hopes of retaining power.
However the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Azam Baki said this week that a lack of information made it difficult for the commission to carry out a thorough probe.
Azam said all that MACC could do was to record statements from both sides.
Clarence who is also a former Assemblyman and ex-chairman of Institute for Development Studies (IDS) Sabah, expresses confidence that despite the “brewing political storm”, the coalition government under the direction of Hajiji will ride roughshod over its opponents at the election.
According to him, the Chief Minster is a man of action who firmly believes that integrity and competence of leaders drive performance of his government.
“Have faith in the Chief Minister…he is always in the thick of things and he isn’t someone who likes to hog the limelight,” Clarence says.
The government’s economic performance since coming to power four years ago is a positive indicator of election success.
And, the meticulously conceived Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) economic plan had raked in over RM12 billion within two years of its launch in 2021.
“Yes it will be an acid test for the eight-party GRS and its partners at the election but what is stopping Sabahans from backing a ruling coalition that works for all and sundry,” he said, noting that Sabah is enjoying the political stability critical for the wellbeing of everyone.
The previous government, he pointed out, had failed miserably to deal with the water and electricity issues when in government but resorted to playing the blame game.
“People ought to know that both state and federal governments have drawn up short and long-term plans to deal with the problems,” he says, adding that the Ulu Padas Hydroelectricity Project (UPHEP) in Tenom is a long-term solution to the state’s water and power woes.
The project is scheduled for completion end of 2030.
Clarence also recalls that Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof had announced in Parliament in March last year that the federal government had approved a RM300 million grant to help deal with the water issue.
Clarence says the people will not be misled into thinking that the water and power problems surfaced only after the last election.
The people, he adds, ought to know that the state government was forced to pay out some RM335 million in lawsuits by nine companies following the termination of their services by the Warisan government shortly after it came to power in 2018.
“Start fessing up Warisan…this huge sum of money could have been used to build infrastructure facilities still lacking, especially in far-flung areas across the state,” he says matter-of-factly.
Meanwhile, Clarence believes that right now, GRS and PH leaders are already focusing on allocation of seats for the upcoming election.
“There will be disagreements on the numbers and therefore, a compromise is needed for sake of going into the election as one strong and cohesive coalition.
“The importance of fielding winnable candidates cannot be overstated. I believe many incumbents will again be picked for re-election as an entrenched incumbent is harder to beat especially if he or she is a hardworking, honest and caring people’s representative,” he adds.
