Party flags, posters and billboards paint Lawas in white and red.
CONTRASTING election scenes are unfolding in parliamentary seats in northern Sarawak with rural Lawas on one end and the vibrant Miri city on the other, offering insights into evolving election trends in the 15th general election.
The Miri seat itself will see a battle of new faces this election.
The seat had been represented by Parti Keadilan Rakyat’s (PKR) Dr Michael Teo for the last 10 years. He has decided to make way for Chiew Choon Man to contest on the Pakatan Harapan (PH) ticket this election.
Greenhorns clash in Miri
(From left) Lai, Chiew and Phang showing their candidacy number to reporters.
Chiew will face Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) candidate Jeffery Phang from Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) and Parti Sarawak Bersatu’s Lawrence Lai, who is a former mayor of Miri.
Looking at GPS’s performance in Piasau and Pujut – the two state seats under Miri – in the last two state elections, support for the ruling coalition would appear to be improving.
SUPP’s Datuk Sebastian Ting wrested Piasau from Democratic Action Party’s (DAP) Alan Ling in 2016 and in 2021, current Mayor Adam Yii toppled DAP in Pujut.
Pujut seat was vacant for about a year before the polls after DAP’s Dr Ting Tiong Choon was disqualified from being an assemblyman when he lost a legal battle over his past dual citizenship. Ling took up the fight but proved no match for Yii.
However, Lai, who was mayor from 2010 to 2016, should not be so easily dismissed. He is expected to bring the fight and may even prove to be the shocker of the polls.
The Miri parliamentary constituency, which has the most number of voters in the state at 142,177, is now the only opposition parliamentary seat in the northern Sarawak region.
In the 2018 election, Dr Teo retained the seat with a majority of 13,663 votes against Sebastian.
Third time’s the charm in Baram?
(From left) Wilfred, Roland, and Anyi pose after being officially announced as candidates at the Marudi Civic Centre.
Meanwhile, Baram will see incumbent Datuk Anyi Ngau and PH’s Roland Engan, who was appointed Sarawak PKR chief in August this year, fighting each other for the third time.
This time round, it will be a three-cornered fight with Wilfred Entika joining the fray as an Independent candidate although he is not expected to make any real waves in the seat.
In their first match in 2013, which was also a three-cornered fight, Anyi, a former Limbang district officer, was contesting for the first time after five-term MP Datuk Jacob Dungau Sagan was dropped.
Anyi won with a razor thin margin of 194 votes with Roland garnering 8,988 votes.
However, in the rematch in 2018, it was a straight fight between Anyi and Roland and this time, Anyi silenced his critics with a much-improved margin of 1,990 votes.
This election, Roland is expected to have more resources at his disposal as he is now the opposition party’s new state chairman but whether or not they are enough to secure his victory remains to be seen.
Baram, which is one of the most challenging constituencies due to its terrain, has 59,535 registered voters.
Limbang encounter
Hasbi flanked by Batu Danau assemblyman Paulus Palu Gumbang on his right and Bukit Kota assemblyman Dr Abdul Rahman Ismail on his left.
In Limbang, three-term incumbent Datuk Hasbi Habibollah will yet again face another opponent from PKR, this time against Racha Balang.
Hasbi of PBB has been contesting in a straight fight against PKR candidates since 2008 with the first being Lau Liak Koi, followed by Baru Bian in 2013 and Ricardo Osmund Yampil Baba in 2018.
GE15 will see Hasbi and Racha battle against one another to win the hearts of 41,999 voters.
With a good track record as a three-term incumbent, all eyes will be on Hasbi who was also the federal Deputy Minister of Rural Development, to see whether he is going to win the seat for a fourth term.
But Racha, despite being a newcomer in the general election, should not be taken lightly. The government pensioner from Lawas had contested in Batu Danau in the state election last year.
Giants in Lawas
(From left) Baru, Henry Sum and Japar in a photo call after the announcement of the candidates for the Lawas seat in GE15.
Right at the bottom of the list of 222 parliamentary seats in Malaysia is Lawas and it represents the northern-most constituency in Sarawak.
This seat is one of the hottest seats in the state this year as GPS’ five-term incumbent Datuk Henry Sum Agong is expected to face his toughest polls yet.
He is embroiled in a three-cornered fight against PSB’s Baru Bian and PKR’s Japar Suyut, but it is Baru that Sum has to watch out for.
Baru, currently one of the most prolific Bumiputera opposition leaders in the state, had decided not to defend the Selangau seat this election and shift to Lawas which is where he was born.
The three-term Ba Kelalan assemblyman was the state PKR chief before he joined PSB in May 2020. And, he was the works minister during Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s administration.
But while many political pundits expect Baru, who is the only PSB incumbent MP seeking re-election, to bring the fight to Sum on Nov 19, the odds appear to be stacked against him.
Ba Kelalan and Bukit Sari are the two state seats under Lawas, and Bukit Sari is regarded as a GPS stronghold with 19,862 voters, compared to 13,793 in Ba Kelalan.
Bukit Sari’s assemblyman is a Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hassan, who is a deputy premier.
In the 2018 general election, Sum won with a majority of 6,000 votes in a three-cornered fight.
Sibuti sizzler
(From left) Lukanisman, Zulhaidah and Bobby pose for the camera after the announcement of GE15 candidates for Sibuti.
As for Sibuti, while it might not be under the spotlight like Lawas, the race is no less crucial with two senior opposition members in the fray.
The incumbent, GPS’ Lukanisman Awang Sauni, is back in familiar territory as he has to face a three-cornered fight yet again.
Lukanisman, who is Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) central deputy youth chief, is challenged by PKR Sarawak women chief Zulhaidah Suboh and Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak president Bobby William.
Zulhaidah and Bobby are not new to the polls as they had both contested in the state election last December.
In the 14th general election, Lukanisman, who was making his debut, won the seat with a majority of 3,676 votes defeating PKR’s Jemat Panjang and PAS’ Zulaihi Bakar.
The seat has 58,522 registered voters.
from Borneo Post Online https://bit.ly/3A0cXBC
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