COMMENT The quiet town of Bintangor in Sarawak’s Meradong constituency has few claims to fame - although its unique green-coloured oranges would qualify, as would the buns sold near the basketball stadium.

Since the state election campaign began on April 6, however, the place has come alive as politicians roll in to hand out freebies to the predominantly Chinese community, which typically remains forgotten until elections roll around.

L NONE ast week, the SUPP hosted an 80-table dinner at the stadium for party members and election workers, followed by a free luncheon yesterday for voters.

Its candidate Ling Kie King (left) is backed by the BN election machinery and financial support, has been holding out the lure that a vote for the ruling coalition will transform Bintangor into a lively city.

Local folks do not buy this because the town has been left in the lurch before. They have yet to recover from the broken promise that a branch of Tunku Abdul Rahman College would be built about 3km from the town.

On Saturday, NONE Ling will take on the incumbent, DAP’s Ting Tze Fui (left) who holds hometown advantage as she is from Bintangor. She has been active during state assembly sittings, highlighting problems faced by her constituents as well as others around the state.

Last November, though, she was suspended from the state assembly sitting for alleging that the state government had misappropriated public funds to bail out 1st Silicon (M) Sdn Bhd, said to be facing insolvency. Called to defend herself before the Privileges Committee last June, she failed to substantiate her claims.

The election campaign gives voters a chance to air festering grievances, as well as consider emerging issues.

Toll collection on Lanang Bridge

The 1.2km bridge links Bintangor and the larger Sarikei Division to Upper Lanang in Sibu. The toll charge for a saloon car is RM3 - or 80 percent higher - than the RM7 levied for use of the more sophisticated Penang Bridge of 13.4km.

Since poor road conditions in Sarawak force many to use a four-wheel drive, they pay RM5 for toll on Lanang Bridge. This creates hardship for those commuting daily to Sibu for work.

Ting has highlighted the issue. The state’s Finance Minister II Wong Soon Koh reportedly said last Friday that a proposal has been sent to the federal government to take over the management of the bridge from Shin Yang Group. It has been handling toll collection since 2006 on a 30-year lease. The federal government’s response is pending.

Split in Meradong SUPP

Word from the grassroots has it that there is a split in this branch. One camp is aligned to Thomas Hii King Hiong, who is well liked by the Ibans for his regular visits to their longhouses and donations to the needy. Hii was Meradong state assemblyperson from 1983-1996. There is talk that he had offered himself as a candidate as he has a better chance of wresting the seat from DAP.

Another faction is said to be aligned to civil engineer Ting Sing Chuon, the Bintangor SUPP Youth treasurer. He is the nephew of Ting Check Sii, a well-known businessman who was once connected to Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud. Sing Chuon’s unsuccessful bid may create dissatisfaction among his followers.

SUPP’s preferred candidate Ling, 52, is a businessperson and the Miri Foochow Association chairperson. Although originally from Bintangor, he has been living in Miri for a few years. Some locals may not warm up to this.

Issues surrounding Al Kitab

Bintangor, which has an electorate of 16,000, has four grandiose churches and countless chapels along Kelupu Road, a major road linking the town to other parts of Sarawak.

azlan Nine out of 10 Chinese in this constituency are Christians; and they form 60 percent of the registered voters. About 6,000 more or 40 percent of the electorate are Ibans, with the majority being Christians.

The normally submissive Christians may revolt against BN due to the impoundment of the Malay-language Bible by the Home Ministry. Although the matter has been resolved, one can never tell whether hearts have been soothed. Over the weekend, 300 people mainly Ibans attended a DAP gathering in Skim B. The Al Kitab issue played nicely into the hands of the opposition.

Malay minority vote

The Malay-Melanau ethnic group constitutes only 2.6 percent of the total voters in Meradong. Most these voters live in Kampung Abang Amin, traditionally a BN stronghold that has delivered votes for SUPP. This may not change much.

However, an increasing number of youth have had the opportunity to get further education elsewhere and may have some influence on the outcome of the polls - although not enough to create a major swing in view of their relatively small number.

Iban support for BN

Due to the vast geographical area of the Meradong constituency and lack of resources, the opposition faces an uphill task in reaching the Ibans.

Som NONE e longhouse heads have resisted visits from the opposition.

SUPP-BN will generally make offers and contributions during the campaign period.

Their votes may sway towards SUPP-BN but this time some divergence from the norm may exist.

Stale politics of development

BN has been using this in every state election, yet nothing has changed for the folks of Bintangor and the surrounding areas.

NONE Youngsters who have completed their secondary school education have to go elsewhere to continue their studies because there is not a single college within the vicinity. Graduates cannot stay here because there is basically too few job opportunities for them.

The DAP has been highlighting its good track record in governing Penang. This was emphasised by Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng in his speech at Kim Hock Lin Restaurant in Bintangor.

Taib factor

The opposition has been going around town, drumming in the suggestion that a vote for BN-SUPP will be a vote for the long-serving CM. Those who feel that ‘Pek Moh’ has been holding on to power for too long, may want to ensure that his administration goes out as well.

 

 

 

NICHOLAS YII hails from Meradong constituency but has to work outside Sarawak due to lack of job opportunities in the resource-rich state. He is unhappy when he has to pay toll to cross the Upper Lanang Bridge just to get to Bintangor.