A rather unlucky Chief Minister

THIS has been quite a disastrous year for Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.

He was supposed to have called for a state election by now but one black swan after another kept getting in his way, upturning his plans to dissolve the state assembly.

A black swan is the metaphor for an event that catches everyone by surprise and Hajiji was certainly unprepared for the string of surprises that came his way.

Luck has been playing hide-and-seek with the Chief Minister (CM) and his government was hit with another alleged corruption scandal this week involving Deputy Chief Minister (DCM) Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan.

Shortly before the latest bombshell, Hajiji told reporters the election was no longer a mystery. The Sabah state assembly will automatically dissolve at midnight on Nov 11 after which an election has to be called within 60 days.

What might have been a sure-win election for Hajiji’s Gagasan Rakyat (GRS) coalition a year ago now resembles a quest tougher than climbing Gunung Kinabalu.

It is rare for political leaders to wait till the eleventh hour to make the call but Hajiji was hoping and praying that the situation would improve.

Outrage over a series of videos earlier this year showing leaders allegedly accepting bribes was about to cool down when the Zara Qairina Mahathir issue exploded, triggering public anger and protests.

And just when Hajiji thought the storm had passed, along came the real storm - torrential rains, floods, landslides that claimed more than a dozen fatalities. The floods also caused power outages and water cuts in many parts of the state, underscoring the poor infrastructure people had been complaining about.

The Sabah Day celebration, which would have allowed the state government to put its best foot forward had to be cancelled.

That was when people began to wonder if the universe was trying to tell Hajiji something. Politicians say these are acts of God, but those affected blame the politicians.

Events in the past months have resembled something from a movie script. But it is all too real - systemic infrastructure failure, corruption, unemployment, the Zara Qairina issue and looming over all this is the Sabah for Sabahans sentiment.

That is what the war zone for the Sabah election will look like.

The battle lines are drawn. It will be a three horse race with GRS teaming up with Pakatan Harapan vs Parti Warisan vs Umno.

All these parties will promise to right the wrongs and bring change but this is an election missing any sort of feel-good mood as pointed out by The Star’s writer Datuk Muguntan Vanar.

But can GRS still ride on their catchy mantra of “rumah kita, kita jaga” (we take charge of our own house) now that it is joined at the hip with the peninsula-based Pakatan?

The Sabah media had described Pakatan’s alliance with GRS while holding hands with Umno as a “love triangle”. But is there more than one love triangle going on?

There is speculation that Umno and Warisan are “secretly dating” and may take their relationship to the next level depending on the election outcome.

An Umno supreme council source claimed that Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal and his Umno counterpart Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi have met for discussions.

The same source said Warisan is willing to concede the CM post to Umno, which has since identified a former civil servant as a potential CM candidate.

Ahmad Zahid openly declared GRS as an enemy at a press conference that saw Sabah Umno chief Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin thumping the table in approval while deputy state chairman Datuk Seri Rahman Dahlan wore a glum expression. Rahman had preferred a grand coalition of Umno, GRS and Pakatan whereas Bung flaunts his friendship with Shafie.

Parti Warisan vice-president Datuk Junz Wong said an overlooked factor is the aspirations of the young and first time voters. This was the cohort that shook up peninsula Malaysia in the 2022 general election and which may do the same in Sabah.

“There are many issues affecting young voters - jobs, wages, the future. This group is not loyal to any party and they could spring surprises,” said Wong, who is Tanjung Aru assemblyman.

It is often said that the Kadazan Muruts are the kingmakers in Sabah but there are rumblings within the Chinese community who have a presence in 11 seats.

That may explain Hajiji’s sweet promise to appoint a Chinese DCM, recognise the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) and more allocations to non-Muslim organisations.

The problem is that the UEC had already been recognised under Shafie’s government which also had a Chinese woman DCM.

Sabah has always had a Chinese DCM until Hajiji put an end to it when he took over as CM. In fact, the Chinese have also held the CM post under the old rotation system for the top job.

Warisan’s Wong dubbed it a “re-announcement of an existing policy” while Sabah MCA Youth chief Roger Yapp called it a “political sweetener devoid of sincerity”.

Sabah elections have never been easy to understand or predict.

But the coming election could be the most complex and intense.

“It will be nasty and personal, almost like a Mexican standoff. Who will shoot first and who will be left standing? Bullets are already flying from all directions,” said a prominent Sabah politician.

This could also be the first election where TikTok is playing such a key role in disseminating information as well as disinformation.

The authorities’ attempts to clamp down on social media accounts is rather out of touch in an age where everyone has opinions. Social media is a beast too big for any government in the world to control. Trying to control it is, to borrow from a Chinese saying, “using one hand to block out the sky”. It is simply not possible.

Politicians in Sabah have only themselves to blame if the people lose faith in politics. Are they not aware that what they say and do is being watched on people’s electronic devices?

Many have overstayed, overtaken by the changes around them and taken the people’s support for granted.

A recent political event in a village illustrated this all too well - the leader of a political party in the state, past his prime and pot-bellied, could be seen lighting up a cigar and puffing away while people stood in the sun watching on.

Politics needs to be about hope for the future and it is dangerous when the people lose hope.

The views expressed here are entirely the writer’s own