A legacy of apathy and neglect
By Michael Kaung, Free Malaysia Today
SANDAKAN: The Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition government, fighting to prevent the opposition from making inroads into Batu Sapi, is struggling to keep voter anger in check.
In a nine-day sprint to woo a bitter electorate in this enormous constituency that sprawls over an area half the size of Johor, the BN election machinery is struggling to placate supporters who had expected wealth and job opportunities to pour in during its long regime.
The opposition candidates’ steady reminders to the voters of BN’s inefficiency are not making matters easier.
PKR’s Ansari Abdullah and the Sabah Progressive Party’s (SAPP) Yong Teck Lee have been quick to pounce on the shortcomings of the BN, portraying the ruling coalition as inefficient and corrupt.
Ansari fired a broadside at the BN by questioning what the coalition had done for the people despite having Chief Minister Musa Aman, Deputy Chief Minister Peter Pang, Federal Deputy Minister VK Liew and the late MP Edmund Chong as their elected representatives.
The by-election is widely seen as a referendum on Musa’s own record as chief minister and Sabah BN chairman. A loss in Batu Sapi would be a big blow to both him and Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) leader Joseph Pairin Kitingan.
Ansari, when releasing the PKR manifesto, accused the BN of being indifferent to the people’s welfare after taking power.
He said this could be seen by the alleged land grab by the BN-led state government in Kampung Perpaduan in 2002-2003.
The village was established during the era of the now-defunct BN component party, Usno. Usno led the state government from 1963 (when Sabah gained independence) to 1976.
Land grab
The BN state government ordered Kampung Perpaduan demolished in 2002 to make way for a major development project.
