ANTIDOTE Sarawakians (and other rural Malaysians) will eventually come round to voting against BN, but this takes time, hard work, political will - and above all, investment in rural communities. Pakatan needs a convincing push in its efforts to relieve the desperate poverty in large parts of Sarawak and Sabah.

The political observers sitting at home, insulting Sarawakians on social media, are shouting into the void. They are calling rural Sarawakians living in poverty “stupid” and “lazy”, but most of their targets do not even have Internet access - and they work harder than the average urban Malaysian.

It’s all about the economy, stupid.

The DAP’s publicity secretary Tony Pua has started on the right foot, by promising to keep engaging rural Sabah and Sarawak, using the party’s ‘Impian’ efforts at social bridging.

But the DAP and PKR will have to go further. It would be insane and stupid to keep repeating the same actions, while hoping for a different outcome.

Oil royalties will relieve poverty

Pakatan Harapan must use its imagination.

Pakatan’s previous (unprecedented) offer of 20 percent oil royalties helped secure a surge in urban Sarawakian voters’ support in 2011 and 2013.

However, this was nullified this year by Chief Minister Adenan Satem’s promise - trotted out since he came to office in 2014 - to personally negotiate for 20 percent oil royalties, as part of his ‘Sarawak for Sarawakians’ sales pitch. He had even encouraged a ‘feel-good’ state assembly resolution to that effect.

For two years, the usual propaganda channels relentlessly plugged Adenan’s claim to support more oil royalties. Then, three days before the recent state election, premier Najib Abdul Razak sighed that it was untimely to consider a hike in royalties, because of low global oil prices.

As expected, Adenan played down Najib’s message in the mainstream media, and trusted correctly that this damaging news would not make it to most rural voters in time for polling day.

Pakatan must now press to spread the message of a better deal for the poor in Sarawak and Sabah, with a greater say in the use of Petronas resources.

Many Sarawakians and Sabahans resent the enormous sums the Umno government has blown on prestige projects such as the Petronas Twin Towers (RM1.8 billion in 1999), the Sepang F1 Circuit (RM286 million in 1999), and the luxurious Prince Court Medical Centre (RM544 million in 2008).

Coffeeshop service staff are mostly paid around RM500 a month in Sarawak.

Pakatan must offer itself as a credible alternative federal government, emphasising social services and rural welfare.

Pakatan must expand on Impian Sarawak and Impian Sabah community work, and provide a significant boost to the quality of life within rural communities.

All Malaysians have a moral responsibility to do this - and not only for election purposes.

Land security will relieve poverty

Native Customary Rights (NCR) land is crucial to the survival of rural Sarawakians.

Many rural communities are terrified by the prospect of losing their ancestral land.

These communities do not participate greatly in the cash economy, and need their communal land and forests for farming, hunting and fishing.

Since 2011, they have supported successful PKR candidates like Baru Bian, Ali Biju and See Chee How, because of their clear stand on championing NCR land rights.

Young NCR lawyers and activists have emphasised land security in their recent campaign for PKR.

Candidates such as Athena Sim, Willie Mongin, Vernon Albert Kedit, Roland Engan, Elia Bit, Pauls Baya, Musa Ngog, Abun Sui and Jamilah Baharuddin won significant chunks of votes in their rural seats, despite the dominance of ‘cash is king’ politics.

Adenan, in turn, swept most rural votes by pledging to gazette NCR land, as well as promising ‘instant projects’. Unfortunately, landowners will find that NCR land gazetted under Section 6 of the Land Code, as promised by Adenan, will not cover ‘pemakai menua’ (fallow land) and ‘pulau galau’ (communal territory used for hunting and gathering) - even though these land rights have already been recognised under law, by Federal Court and Appeals Court landmark judgments.

The DAP, PKR, and even Amanah can build on this NCR campaign. Lawyers working for Pakatan must embrace more NCR cases on behalf of the rural poor (and not corporate interests). If these lawyers and activists persevere in the face of threats and bribes, they can build trust and grassroots support.

A brighter future for Sarawakians will translate to a better outlook for all Malaysians.

KERUAH USIT is a human rights activist - ‘anak Sarawak, Bangsa Malaysia’.