Mission Impossible For Pas To Grab More Seats In Sabah Election Battle

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ON Nov 29, when Sabah troops to the poll’s booths, PAS hopes that at least one of its candidates will win a state seat.
So far, the Islamist party had never been given a chance to set foot on Sabah soil through many state elections, hence it was unable to export its brand of toxic politics into the “Land Below the Wind”.
In the 14th state election held simultaneously with the general election, it fielded 18 candidates but none made it to the state legislative assembly.
Likewise in the 15th state polls, PAS stayed out of the fray rather than throw its hat into the ring and getting drubbed decisively again
But, now, the party with its rigidly conversative brand of Islam sees the 17th state election as another opportunity to “break the egg” in Sabah, meaning that it wants to erase its zero record in the several state polls battles in the past.
It plans to put up 12 candidates but knowing how the people there are against its presence, it is banking on getting just one seat.

A breakthrough year?
With just one seat, it is probably enough for the right-wing party to plant the seeds of discord and spread insidiously its poisonous brand of politics.
PAS did manage to break the so-called “duck egg” when its member Aliakbar Gulasan who is PAS Sabah commissioner was nominated to the state legislative assembly following the 16th snap state election in 2020.
But the party did not participate in the election probably because it knew that it would not have a snowball chance in hell of winning any state seats let alone capture power.
Sabah is a different kettle of fish. It does not see itself as another state but a region.
Incumbent Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan has reportedly claimed that Putrajaya had already recognised Sabah as a region.
Therefore, it follows that the slogan “Sabah for Sabahans” will be ringing loud and clear in the coming battle for the hearts and minds of the people.

PAS Sabah is going all out to instil its influence in the minds of the young (Image credit: Dewan Pemuda PAS Negeri Sabah [Official]/Facebook)This means that “state nationalism and local issues” will be the deciding factors in the election of a new state government.
What then can PAS contribute to the state except its noxious type of politics with religion and race their only trump cards?
Nevertheless, it will try its level best to garner votes from the Muslim voters as well as from the Bumiputera group.
In Sabah, the Bumiputera are indigenous people who are not necessarily Muslims. Many are also Christians. Ethnic groups like Kadazan-Dusun, Chinese, Bajau, Bugis and Murut profess other faiths like Buddhism, Christianity and Hinduism.

Locals not keen with hereafter
Master at the art of exploiting religious and racial issues, PAS will no doubt concentrate its fire on the Malay-Muslim vote bank, especially in the rural areas.
It may also be eyeing new Muslim converts, especially the youth, by getting them to come on board the green boat. Maybe, it feels young minds are susceptible to its preachings, hence are ripe for the picking.
If PAS can capture all the Malay votes and a large chunk of the indigenous people’s support, it can probably sneak into the state assembly with more of its representatives.
But this is not easy. The inhabitants there are more concerned with local issues of the here and now than listening to the political rhetoric of PAS leaders who are more worried about the hereafter.
Sabah knows that PAS is a divisive force as can be seen in its behaviour in the peninsula where its pernicious politics had roiled the country to the extent of bringing it to the brink.
And now this same political force wants to re-enact a similar destructive course in Sabah in the coming fight over the soul of the state.

Emboldened by its impressive parliamentary victories in the 15th General Election (GE15) by having captured 43 seats, PAS feels the time is right to tear down the walls of Fortress Sabah and plant its “moon” flags in the law-making body.
But what local issues can PAS bring up in Sabah? The current talk of the town is the recent verdict of the Kota Kinabalu High Court that the federal government had acted illegally by failing to “honour Sabah’s 40% share of federal revenue for nearly five decades”.
Soul searching
Putrajaya had thus breached the Federal Constitution, ruled the court.
This is a potentially explosive issue prompting Entrepreneur and Cooperatives Development Minister Ewon Benedick to threaten to resign if Putrajaya appeals against the ruling.
Will PAS side with the Sabah state government when it goes on the stump? Or back Putrajaya in its bid to overturn the ruling?
Whichever position it takes, the fundamentalist party is unlikely to influence the voters. If it backs the Madani administration, it is going against the wishes of Sabah to get back a large slice of its revenue.
If it supports the Sabah state government, it may be seen as just a political gimmick to woo the electorate.
PAS president Tan Sri Hadi AwangNevertheless, party president Tan Sri Hadi Awang and the other PAS leaders can exploit the corruption scandal that is shaking the state administration by showcasing its exemplary conduct in the four states it rules – Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah, and Perlis.
But this ploy may not work because Sabah knows what it means to be ruled by political-cum-religious leaders who are only interested in all matters spiritual.
It is mission impossible for PAS to topple the current administration led by incumbent Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor who heads Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) now or in the future.
The most likely scenario will be the strong winds in Sabah will blow PAS back to the peninsula where it will continue to wreak havoc in the run-up to the 16th General Election (GE16) which is only two years away. 
Phlip Rodrigues is a retired journalist.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of  MMKtT.
- Focus Malaysia.

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