The Malaysian Insight

LACK of employment opportunities has pushed Sandakan youth to move elsewhere and their absence is set to play a key role in the coming parliamentary by-election, said voters and analysts.

They feel that these voters are unlikely to return to Sandakan to vote, largely due to cost factors involved in their journey back home for the by-election on May 11.

As such, the winner of the by-election is looking at a slim majority only, said Universiti Malaysia Sabah political analysts Lee Kuok Tiung.

“It won’t be a full swing election like the last general election,” Lee told The Malaysian Insight, saying that many Sandakan youth won’t be voting next week.

In the last general election, Sandakan saw a 99% voter turnout, allowing Sabah DAP to retain the Sandakan parliamentary seat and the two state seats – Tanjung Papat and Elopura, which were previously Barisan Nasional seats.

The Sandakan federal seat fell vacant following the death of Stephen Wong on March 28.

Sabah DAP has decided to place the late incumbent’s daughter, Vivian Wong, as its candidate and she will face four other aspirants, including three independent candidates.

Even though Vivian is likely to win, Linda Tsen of former BN component Parti Bersatu Sabah may be able to cause an upset as she is a senior politician compared to the former.

“Although DAP is a favourite to win this by election, PBS is an underdog capable of creating an upset.  

“It is too early to evaluate at this point but PBS can cause an upset,” said Lee, saying the absence of youth voters will make the difference.

An analyst from a Sabah think tank also said of the absence of young Chinese voters is detrimental to DAP’s chances as Stephen’s victory in GE14 was largely due to their votes.

“There was a 99% turnout in GE14 as many had returned home to vote then, but this time around, DAP will not have that luxury,” said the analyst who refused to be named.

Chinese account for 51% of the voters in Sandakan, followed by Bumiputera Sabahans (26%), Malays (16%) and others (8%).

Sandakan voter Hartini Mahmud, 25, a hotel worker in Kota Kinabalu, is one voter who is definitely not going back to vote in the by-election.

“It’s the working schedule and it is a long drive home. Too many hours spent on the road.

“If I am thinking of flying, the airline tickets would be a costly affair for me,” said Hartini.

Hartini had come to Kota Kinabalu with a group of former school friends about five years ago after they could not find jobs back home.

“It is not easy to get work in Sandakan. There are hotels there but many bosses prefer to hire (cheaper) foreign workers.

“So, we locals who did not quite excel in school have to find work in places like Kota Kinabalu,” she said.

She said although many bosses pay the minimum wage, the opportunities of making extra money are much better when she is in Kota Kinabalu.

Hartini is perhaps one of thousands of Sandakan young adults who had to venture out of Sandakan to find work in Kota Kinabalu or elsewhere, with the promise of good pay and better welfare protection.

At present, the working group of Sandakan voters aged between 20-60 account for 74.96%, or 30,083 out of 40,131 voters in Sandakan.

The 20-29 age group account for 14.52% or 5,827 voters.

Unemployment is among one of the core problems in Sandakan district. Many young Sandakans are finding it harder to find work due to the drop on the palm oil prices and its effect to the local economy. – May 2, 2019.