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Sabah
Sabah is one of 13
member states of Malaysia.[1]
It is located on the northern portion of the island of Borneo. It is
the second largest state in the country after Sarawak, which it borders
on its south-west. It also shares a border with the province of East
Kalimantan of Indonesia in the south. In spite of its status as a
Malaysian state, Sabah remains a disputed territory; the Philippines
has a dormant claim over much of the eastern part of the
territory.[2][3] The capital of Sabah is Kota Kinabalu,
formerly known as Jesselton. Sabah is known as "Sabah, negeri di bawah
bayu", which means "Sabah, the land below the wind", because of its
location just south of the typhoon-prone region around the Philippines.
History
The region of
present-day Sabah was discovered by Europeans around the early 16th
century. This was during the period when the Sultanate was in its
'golden era'. The region was known as Sava to Portuguese explorers. In
1658 the Sultan of Brunei ceded the northeast portion of Borneo to the
Sultan of Sulu in compensation for the latter's help in settling a
civil war in the Brunei Sultanate. In 1761 an officer of the British
East India Company, Alexander Dalrymple, concluded an agreement with
the Sultan of Sulu to allow him to set up a trading post in the region.
This, together with other attempts to build a settlement and a military
station centering around Pulau Balambangan, proved to be a failure.
There was minimal foreign interest in this region afterward and control
over most parts of north Borneo seems to have remained under the
Sultanate of Brunei. The southern portion of Palawan was once part of
Sabah, due to Palawan's proximity to Borneo. Southern portions of the
island were under the control of the Sultanate of Borneo for more than
two centuries, and Islam was introduced. During the same period, trade
relations flourished, and intermarriages among the natives and Chinese,
Japanese, Arab, and Hindu peoples became commonplace. The intermixing
of blood resulted in a distinct breed of Palaweños, both in physical
stature and features. In 1749, the Sultanate of Borneo ceded southern
Palawan to Spain.
In 1865 the
American Consul of Brunei, Claude Lee Moses, obtained a 10-year lease
over North Borneo from the Sultan of Brunei. Ownership was then passed
to an American trading company owned by J.W. Torrey, T.B. Harris and
some Chinese merchants. They set up a base and settlement in Kimanis
but this too failed due to financial reasons. The rights of the trading
company were then sold to Baron Von Overbeck, the Austrian Consul in
Hong Kong, and he later obtained another 10-year renewal of the lease.
The rights were subsequently transferred to Alfred Dent, whom in 1881
formed the British North Borneo Provisional Association Ltd.
In the
following year, the British North Borneo Company was formed and Kudat
was made its capital. In 1883 the capital was moved to Sandakan to capitalise
on its potential of vast timber resources. In 1888 North Borneo became
a protectorate of the United Kingdom. Administration and control over
North Borneo remained in the hands of the Company despite being a
protectorate and they effectively ruled until 1942. Their rule had been
generally peaceful except for some rebellions, including one led by the
Bajau leader Mat Salleh from 1894 to 1900,[5] and another led by
Antanum[6] of the Muruts which is known as the Rundum resistance in
1915.
Second World War and the road to
independence
From 1942 to
1945 during the Second World War, Japanese forces occupied North
Borneo. The Japanese forces landed in Labuan on January 1, 1942, and
continued to invade the rest of North Borneo. Bombings by the allied
forces devastated most towns including Sandakan, which was
razed to the ground. Resistance forces against Japanese occupation were
concentrated on the west and north coast of North Borneo. The
resistance in Jesselton was led by Albert Kwok and Jules Stephens of
the Kinabalu Guerillas. Another resistance was led by Panglima Alli
from Sulug Island, off the coast of Jesselton. In Kudat, there was also
some resistance led by Tun Datu Mustapha. On October 10, 1943, the
Kinabalu Guerrillas together with followers of Panglima Alli staged a
surprise attack on the Japanese. The attack however was foiled. The 324
local residents who participated in the attacks, including Albert Kwok
and Panglima Alli, were detained in Petagas and later executed on
January 21, 1944.[8] The site of the execution is today known as the
Petagas War Memorial.
In Sandakan there was
once a brutal POW camp run by the Japanese for British and Australian
POWs from North Borneo. The prisoners suffered in agony in their first
year of captivity under notoriously inhuman conditions, but much worse
was to come through the forced marches of January, March and June 1945
(refer to Sandakan
Memorial Park WWII POW Museum Records). Allied bombardments caused the
Japanese to relocate the POW camp to inland Ranau, 260 km away. All the
prisoners, who by then were reduced to 2504 in number, were to be
moved, but instead of transport, were forced to march the infamous " Sandakan-Ranau Death
March" route. Sickness, disease, exhaustion, thirst, hunger, whipping,
and shooting killed most of the prisoners, except for six Australians
who successfully escaped, were never caught, and survived to tell the
horrific story of the death march. The fallen of this march are
commemorated each year on Anzac Day (Memorial Day) in Australia and in Sandakan, at the
original POW campsite where a POW hut style museum and a black marble
memorial obelisk monument are nestled in a peaceful park setting with a
lily pond.
When Japan
surrendered at the end of the war, North Borneo was administered by the
British Military Administration and in 1946 it became a British Crown
Colony. Jesselton was chosen to replace Sandakan as the
capital. The Crown continued to rule North Borneo until 1963. On 31
August 1963 North Borneo attained self-government. There was a call for
complete independence on that date by it was denied by the British
Governor who remained in power until Malaysia Day.[9] The
intention had been to form Malaysia
on 31 August
but due to objection from the Philippines and Indonesia, the formation
had to be postponed to September 16.[citation needed] On 16 September
1963, North Borneo together with Malaya, Sarawak and Singapore formed
the Federation of Malaysia
and from then on, it became known as Sabah and declared independent
from British sovereignty.[7][10] To safeguard the interest of North
Borneo in the new federation, a 20-point agreement was entered into
between the federal and the state government.
Philippine claim
The Sultanate
of Sulu was granted the north-eastern part of the territory as a prize
for helping the Sultan of Brunei against his enemies and from then on
that part of Borneo was recognized as part of the Sultan of Sulu's
sovereignty. In 1878, Baron Von Overbeck, an Austrian partner
representing The British North Borneo Company and his British partner
Alfred Dent, leased the territory of Sabah. In return, the company was
to provide arms to the Sultan to resist the Spaniards and 5,000 Malayan
dollars annual rental based on the Mexican dollar's value at that time
or its equivalent in gold. This lease was continued until the
independence and formation of the Malaysian federation in 1963 together
with Singapore, Sarawak and the states of Malaya. As of 2004, the
Malaysian Embassy to the Philippines had been paying cession/rental
money amounting to US$1,500 per year (about 6,300 Malaysian Ringgits)
to the heirs of the Sultanate of Sulu.
The contract
between Sri Paduka Maulana Al Sultan Mohammad Jamalul Alam,
representing the sultanate as owner and sovereign of Sabah on one hand,
and that of Gustavus Baron de Overbeck and Alfred Dent representing the
North Borneo Company, on the other as lessees of Sabah, was executed on
22 January 1878. The Lease prohibits the transfer of Sabah to any
nation, company or individual without the consent of His Majesty’s
Government (“Government of the Sultan of Sulu”).[11]
Less than a
decade later, the Sultanate of Sulu came under the control of Spain and
in 1885, Spain relinquished all of its claim to Borneo to the British
in the Madrid Protocol of 1885.[12] In spite of that, in 1906 and 1920
the United States formally reminded United Kingdom that Sabah did not
belong to them and was still part of the Sultanate of Sulu on the
premise that Spain never acquired sovereignty over North Borneo to
transfer all its claims of sovereignty over North Borneo to the United
Kingdom on the Madrid Protocol of 1885. This is so because the Sultan
of Sulu did not include his territory and dominion in North Borneo in
signing the treaty of 1878 recognizing the Spanish sovereignty over
“Jolo and its dependencies.”.[citation needed] North Borneo was never
considered a dependency of Jolo.[citation needed] However, the British
Government ignored the reminder and still annexed the territory of
North Borneo as a Crown Colony on 10 July 1946. This was in spite of
the fact that the British Government was aware of the decision made by
the High Court of North Borneo on 19 December 1939, that the successor
of the Sultan in the territory of Sabah was the Government of the
Philippines and not United Kingdom.[13]
On 12
September 1962, during President Diosdado Macapagal's administration,
the territory of North Borneo, and the full sovereignty, title and
dominion over the territory were ceded by the then reigning Sultan of
Sulu, HM Sultan Muhammad Esmail E. Kiram I, to the Republic of the
Philippines.[14] The cession effectively gave the Philippine government
the full authority to pursue their claim in international courts. The
Philippines broke diplomatic relations with Malaysia after the
federation had included Sabah in 1963. It was revoked in 1989 because
succeeding Philippine administrations have placed the claim on the
backburner in the interest of pursuing cordial economic and security
relations with Kuala Lumpur.[15]
Demographics
The
population of Sabah was 2,449,389 in 2000[20] and was the third most
populous state in Malaysia
after Selangor and Johor. It is estimated that Sabah's population has
exceeded that of Johor with an estimated population of 3,400,000 in
2007.[21] Sabah indeed has one of the highest population growth rates
in the country as a result of illegal immigration from the
Muslim-dominated southern provinces of Philippines.
- Kadazan-Dusun: 17.8%
- Rungus
- Bajau: 13.4%
- Malay: 11.5%
- Murut: 3.3%
- Other bumiputra: 14.6%
- Chinese (majority Hakka): 13.2%
- Other non-bumiputra: 4.8%
- Non-Malaysian citizen: 25%
Ethnicities and religion
Statistics of
religion by state are not provided by the Department of Statistics Malaysia. Sabah is
home to the second highest proportion of Christians (Roman Catholic and
Protestant) in Malaysia,
behind that of Sarawak. In 2000, its religious breakdown was as
follows: Islam 63.7%, Christianity 27.8%, Buddhism 12%, no religion
1.0%, Taoism/Confucianism 0.4%, Others 0.3%, Hinduism 0.1%, unknown
0.3%.
The people of
Sabah are divided into 32 officially recognised ethnic groups. The
largest non-bumiputra ethnic group is the Chinese. The predominant
Chinese dialect group in Sabah is Hakka, followed by Cantonese and
Hokkien. Most Chinese people in Sabah are concentrated in the major
cities and towns, namely Kota Kinabalu, Sandakan
and Tawau. The largest indigenous ethnic group is Kadazan-Dusun,
followed by Bajau, and Murut. There is a much smaller proportion of
Indians and other South Asians in Sabah compared to other parts of Malaysia. Cocos people
is a minority ethnic residing in Sabah especially at the Tawau
Division. Collectively, all persons coming from Sabah are known as
Sabahans and identify themselves as such.
Malay (Bahasa
Malaysia)
is the national language spoken across ethnicities, although the spoken
Sabahan dialect of Malay differs much in inflection and intonation from
the West Malaysian version. The Sabahan accent of Malay is actually
what 'Dewan Bahasa & Pustaka' endorses, which is Baku. English,
Mandarin as well as Hakka and Cantonese are widely understood. In
addition, Kadazan-Dusun, Bajau, Murut and other smaller groups also
have distinct ethnic languages. Sabah also has its own unique slang for
many words in Malay.
Sabah demography consists of many ethnic groups, for example:
- Kadazan-Dusun
- Malay
- Kwijau
- Murut
- Bajau
- Illanun[22]
- Lotud
- Rungus
- Tambanuo
- Dumpas
- Mangka'ak
- Suluk
- Orang Sungai
- Brunei
- Kedayan
- Bisaya
- Tidong
- Maragang
- Orang Cocos
- Paitan
- Ida'an
- Minokok
- Bisaya (Philippines)
- Tagalog
- Chavacano
- Rumanau
- Sabah born Chinese (Malaysian)
- Sabah born Chinese with mixed indigenous
parentage Example: Bumiputra Sino Kadazan etc.
- Lun Bawang
- Other inhabitants:
- Filipino born Sabahan (Malaysian)-
Chavacano,Visaya,Ilocano,Suluk,Badjao,Iranun,Tausug
- Indonesian born Sabahan (Malaysian)-
Bugis,Jawa,Timoris,Banjar
- Pakistani born Sabahan (Malaysian)-
Punjabi,Pastun
- Cocos born Sabahan (Malaysian)- Cocos
- [Burmese/Myramar born Sabahan
(Malaysian)- Burmese]
- Nepal born Sabahan (Malaysian)- Nepal
Gurkha
- Indian born Sabahan (Malaysian)-
Punjabi,Tamil
- Sarawakian indigenous Malaysian -
Iban,Penan,Dayak
- Portuguese & Dutch descendant
(Malaysian)- Serani, Belanda
- Peninsular Malay,Chinese,Indian
Economy
Sabah's
economy was traditionally heavily dependent on lumber based on export
of tropical timber, but with increasing depletion at an alarming rate
of the natural forests, ecological efforts to save the remaining
natural rainforest areas were done in early 1982 through forest
conservation methods by collecting seeds of different species
particularly acacia mangium and planting it to pilot project areas
pioneered by the Sandakan
Forest Research Institute researchers, however, palm oil has emerged as
a choice of farmers to plant as a cash crop. Other agricultural
products important in the Sabah economy include rubber and cacao.
Tourism is currently the second largest contributor to the economy.
There are other exports like seafood and vegetables.
In 1970,
Sabah ranked as one of the richest states in the federation, with a per
capita GDP second only to Selangor (which then included Kuala
Lumpur).[23] However, despite its vast wealth of natural resources,
Sabah is currently the poorest of Malaysia's states. Average incomes
are now among the lowest in Malaysia,
and with a
considerably higher cost of living than in West Malaysia. In 2000
Sabah had an unemployment rate of 5.6 per cent, the highest of any
Malaysian state and almost twice the national average of 3.1 per cent.
The state has the highest poverty level in the country at 16 per cent,
more than three times the national average. Due to the lack of industry
that can provide jobs for professional and highly skilled workforce,
large numbers of Sabahan's have literally migrated or practically moved
out to either to Peninsular Malaysia,
Singapore,
Australia and USA. Part of the problem is the inequitable distribution
of wealth between state and federal governments, and large numbers of
illegal immigrants from Indonesia, the Philippines, even from China and
East Timor, whose population was estimated to be in the region of half
a million people. Due to huge tracks of land that has been cultivated
with palm oil, the industry is not fully mechanized and it is highly
dependent towards immigrants with work pass and illegals. In 2004 the
poverty level worsened to 22 per cent.[24] However the state government
with the assistance from the Federal government and active
participation of UN and the governments where the illegal immigrants
originated, steps has been taken and slowly Sabah is overcoming the
crises.
The recent
tabling of the Ninth Malaysia
Plan has allocated RM16.908 billion for Sabah, the second highest state
allocation after Sarawak's but it is still only 8% of the total
national budget for a population of Sabah of more than 13%, and an area
of more than 25%. This is clearly discriminatory and has contributed to
the State of Sabah having the largest number of people below the
poverty line in Malaysia,
and lower than the Indonesian national poverty rate and in the same
level as Aceh and Myanmar based on 2004 United Nations
figures.[24][25][26][27]
The fund is
pledged to improve the state's rural areas, improve the state's
transportation and utilities infrastructures, and boost the economy of
Sabah. The government has placed its focus on three major areas of the
economy which have the potential to be Sabah's growth engine. These are
agriculture, manufacturing and tourism.
When this
discriminatory budget against Sabah and Sarawak was pointed out, the
allocation for Sabah was increased from the earlier figure of 15.7
billion RM while there is none for Sarawak. The reason given to
Sarawak's Chief Minister, as reported by Borneo Post (11 November 2007)
is that it is not economical to develop Sarawak. Sarawak is to be the
source of renewable resources for Malaya. This situation applies to
Sabah as well except that Sarawak's renewable resources are not even
meant for Sabah. The percentage of the total budget is still much less
than Sabah's population and area burdens.
Tourism
Tourism,
particularly eco-tourism, is a major contributor to the economy of
Sabah. In 2006, 2,000,000 tourists visited Sabah[30] and it is
estimated that the number will continue to rise following vigorous
promotional activities by the state and national tourism boards and
also increased stability and security in the region. Sabah currently
has six national parks. One of these, the Kinabalu National Park, was
designated as a World Heritage Site in 2000. It is the first[31] of two
sites in Malaysia
to obtain this status, the other being the Gunung Mulu National Park in
Sarawak. These parks are maintained and controlled by Sabah Parks under
the Parks Enactment 1984. The Sabah Wildlife Department also has
conservation, utilization, and management responsibilities.
National Parks
- Mount Kinabalu Park - the highest mountain in Southeast
Asia with an altitude of 4,101 metres (13,455 ft). It is lower than
Puncak Jaya in Irian Jaya on the island of New Guinea, Indonesia at
4,884 metres which is located outside of the South East Asia Region.
- Turtle Islands Park - conservation efforts for
endangered sea turtles
- Tunku Abdul Rahman Park - A national park consisting of
five islands off the coast of Kota Kinabalu
- Sipadan Park - Located near Semporna, the oceanic island
of Sipadan has a very rich underwater ecosystem.
- Pulau Tiga Park
- Crocker Range Park
- Tawau Hills Park
Arts and entertainment
Reality TV
Sabahan
contestants attained many finalist spots and even won major reality TV
show contests. This phenomenon is probably due to many hidden Sabahan
talents finally uncovered through Reality TV.
- One in a
Million: Ayu (OIAM2 winner), Esther (1st runner-up OIAM3)
- Akademi
Fantasia finalist: Norlinda Nanuwil & Adam - AF2, Felix Agus &
Marsha Milan Londoh - AF3, Velvet & Lotter - AF4, Candy & Ebi -
AF5, Stacy the AF6/1st Sabahan champion, Adira - AF8
- Gang Starz:
E-Voke (season 1 semi-finalist), One Nation Emcees (season 2 winner)
- Blast-Off: Jiaja (season 2 winner)
- Mentor: Pija
(winner season 1), Fiq (winner season 2), Chaq (finalist season 3)
- Raja Lawak:
Kechik (winner season 4), Alex (3rd place season 4)
- Reality TV
stars (non-finalist): Nikki Palikat (Malaysian Idol), Mas (AF2), Yazer
(AF3), Nora (AF4), Farha & Noni (AF5), Rubisa & Zizi (AF7), AB
& Mark Malim & Shone (OIAM2), Ema & Anum & Ain (AF8)
- Love Me Do: Kelvin Teo (season 1 winner)
Movies & TV
The earliest
known footage of Sabah comes from two movies by Martin and Osa Johnson
titled 'Jungle Depths of Borneo' and 'Borneo'.
Sabah's first
homegrown film was Orang Kita, starring Abu Bakar Ellah.
Some films
and TV shows filmed in Sabah include the reality show Survivor: Borneo,
The Amazing Race, Eco-Challenge Borneo, films Bat*21, as well as a
number of Hong Kong production films such as Born Rich. Sabah was also
featured in Sacred Planet, a documentary hosted by Robert Redford.
Dances
There are
many types of traditional dances in Sabah, most notably:
- Daling-daling:
Danced by Bajaus and Suluks . In its original form, it was a dance
which combined Arabic belly dancing and the Indian dances common in
this region, complete with long artificial finger nails and golden head
gear accompanied by a Bajau and Suluk song called daling-daling which
is a love story. Its main characteristic is the large hip and breast
swings but nowadays it is danced with a faster tempo but less swings,
called Igal-igal by the Bajau from Semporna District.
- Sumazau:
Kadazandusun traditional dance which performed during weddings and
Kaamatan festival. The dance form is akin to a couple of birds flying
together.
- Magunatip:
Famously known as the Bamboo dance, requires highly skilled dancers to
perform. Native dance of the Muruts, but can also be found in different
forms and names in South East Asia.
Sports
Matlan Marjan is a former football player for Malaysia. He scored
two goals against England in an international friendly on June 12,
1991. The English team included Stuart Pearce, David Batty, David
Platt, Nigel Clough, Gary Lineker, was captained by Bryan Robson and
coached by Bobby Robson.[34] No other Malaysian player managed to
achieve this.[citation needed] In 1995, he along with six other Sabah
players, were arrested on suspicion of match-fixing. Although the
charges were dropped, he was prevented from playing professional
football and was banished to another district.[35][36] He was punished
under the Internal Security Act (which allows for indefinite detention
without any trial, despite being proven innocent, and even on
non-security related issues).
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|
| Sabah |
| — State — |
Flag |
Coat
of arms |
|
| Motto: Sabah Maju Jaya |
| Anthem: Sabah Tanah Airku |
|
Sabah in
Malaysia
|
Coordinates:
 5°15′N 117°0′E |
| Capital |
Kota Kinabalu |
| Government |
| - Ruling
party |
Barisan Nasional |
| - Governor |
Ahmadshah
Abdullah |
| - Chief
Minister (Ketua Menteri) |
Musa Aman |
| Area |
| - Total |
76,115 km2 (29,388.2 sq mi) |
| Population (2009
est.) |
| - Total |
3,202,880 |
| - Density |
42.1/km2 (109/sq mi) |
| Demonym |
Sabahan |
| Human Development Index |
| - HDI
(2003) |
0.735 (medium) |
| Postal code |
88xxx
to 91xxx |
| Calling
code |
087 (Inner District)
088 (Kota
Kinabalu & Kudat)
089 (Lahad Datu, Sandakan
& Tawau) |
| Vehicle
registration |
SA,SAA,SAB (Kota Kinabalu
& Kota Belud)
SB (Beaufort)
SD (Lahad Datu)
SK (Kudat)
SS (Sandakan)
ST (Tawau)
SU (Keningau) |
| Former
name |
North Borneo |
| Brunei
Sultanate |
16th century |
| Sulu Sultanate |
1658 |
| British North Borneo |
1882 |
| Japanese
occupation |
1941-194 |
|
Geography
Mount Kinabalu, the highest mountain in Malaysia.
The western
part of Sabah is generally mountainous, containing the three highest
mountains in Malaysia.
The most prominent range is the Crocker Range which houses several
mountains of varying height from about 1,000 metres to 4,000 metres. At
the height of 4,095 metres, Mount Kinabalu is the highest mountain in
South East Asia . The jungles of Sabah are classified as rainforests
and host a diverse array of plant and animal species. Kinabalu National
Park was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 2000 because of its
richness in plant diversity combined with its unique geological,
topographical, and climatic conditions.[16]
Lying nearby
Mount Kinabalu is Mount Tambuyukon. At a height of 2,579 metres, it is
the third highest peak in the country. Adjacent to the Crocker Range is
the Trus Madi Range which houses the second highest peak in the
country, Mount Trus Madi, at a height of 2,642 metres. There are lower
ranges of hills extending towards the western coasts, southern plains,
and the interior or central part of Sabah. These mountains and hills
are traversed by an extensive network of river valleys and are in most
cases covered with dense rainforest.
The central and eastern portion of Sabah are generally lower mountain
ranges and plains with occasional hills. Kinabatangan River begins from
the western ranges and snakes its way through the central region
towards the east coast out into the Sulu Sea. It is the second longest
river in Malaysia
after Rejang River at a length of 560 kilometres. The forests
surrounding the river valley also contains an array of wildlife
habitats, and is the largest forest-covered floodplain in Malaysia.[17]
The northern tip of Borneo at Tanjung
Simpang Mengayau
Other
important wildlife regions in Sabah include Maliau Basin, Danum Valley,
Tabin, Imbak Canyon and Sepilok. These places are either designated as
national parks, wildlife reserves, virgin jungle reserves, or
protection forest reserve.
Over three
quarters of the human population inhabit the coastal plains. Major
towns and urban centers have sprouted along the coasts of Sabah. The
interior region remains sparsely populated with only villages, and the
occasional small towns or townships.
Beyond the coasts of Sabah lie a number of islands and coral reefs,
including the largest island in Malaysia, Pulau
Banggi. Other large islands include, Pulau Jambongan, Pulau
Balambangan, Pulau Timbun Mata, Pulau Bumbun, and Pulau Sebatik. Other
popular islands mainly for tourism are, Pulau Sipadan, Pulau Selingan,
Pulau Gaya, Pulau Tiga, and Pulau Layang-Layang.
Government
State government structure
Administrative divisions and districts of
Sabah
Sabah is a
representative democracy with universal suffrage for all citizens above
21 years of age. However, legislation regarding state elections are
within the powers of the federal government and not the state. The Yang
di-Pertua Negeri sits at the top of the hierarchy followed by the state
legislative assembly and the state cabinet. The Yang di-Pertuan Negeri
is officially the head of state however its functions are largely
ceremonial. The chief minister is the head of government and is also
the leader of the state cabinet. The legislature is based on the
Westminster system and therefore the chief minister is appointed based
on his or her ability to command the majority of the state assembly. A
general election representatives in the state assembly must be held
every five years. This is the only elected government body in the
state, with local authorities being fully appointed by the state
government owing to the suspension of local elections by the federal
government. The assembly meets at the state capital, Kota Kinabalu.
Members of the state assembly are elected from 60 constituencies which
are delineated by the Election Commission of Malaysia and may not
necessarily result in constituencies of same voter population sizes.
Sabah is also represented in the federal parliament by 25 members
elected from the same number of constituencies.
The present
elected state and federal government posts are held by Barisan Nasional
(BN), a coalition of parties which includes United Malays National
Organisation (UMNO), Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP), United
Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (UPKO), Parti Bersatu
Rakyat Sabah (PBRS), Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS), Liberal Democratic
Party (LDP), and Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA).[citation needed]
The last state election was in 2004 and as of 2006, the state
legislature has 60 members. It comprises 59 BN state legislature
members (Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri) and a single independent. Of this,
32 are from UMNO, 13 from PBS, 5 from UPKO, 4 from the SAPP, 3 from
LDP, and one each from MCA and PBRS.[18]
The political climate
Prior to the
formation of Malaysia
in 1963, the then North Borneo interim government submitted a 20-point
agreement to the Malayan government as conditions before Sabah would
join the Federation. Sabah entered Malaysia as an
autonomous state with a Christian Kadazan-Dusun chief minister, but
soon succumbed to Kuala Lumpur's vision of a one-party unitary Islamic
state dominated by the indigenous Muslim Bajau and Brunei Malay people.
This has created considerable friction and even occasional calls for
secession. These tensions are further inflamed by Kuala Lumpur's
colonial mentality towards Sabah, wherein 95% of the profits from
Sabah's immense natural resources are taken by the federal government,
leaving the state government with only 5%. Aside from nominally
separate immigration controls, little evidence remains of Sabah's
theoretical autonomy.[citation needed]
Until the
Malaysian general election, 2008, Sabah, along with the states of
Kelantan and Terengganu, are the only three states in Malaysia that had ever
been ruled by opposition parties not part of the ruling BN coalition.
Led by Datuk Seri Joseph Pairin Kitingan, PBS formed government after
winning the 1985 elections and ruled Sabah until 1994. Due to certain
internal troubles, BN took over the government in 1994 despite PBS
winning the elections. PBS subsequently joined the BN coalition in
2002.[citation needed]
A unique
feature of Sabah politics was a policy initiated by the BN in 1994
whereby the chief minister's post is rotated among the coalition
parties every 2 years regardless of the party in power at the time,
thus theoretically giving an equal amount of time for each major ethnic
group to rule the state. This extremely weakens the executive branch of
the state government, which was formerly much at odds with the federal
government in Kuala Lumpur. It also serves to give a disproportionate
power to the indigenous Muslim Bajau ethnic group, at the expense of
the mainly Christian indigenous Kadazan-Dusun, the largest ethnic
group. This practice has since stopped with power now held by majority
in the state assembly by the UMNO party, which also holds a majority in
the national parliament.[citation needed]
There has
been a conspiracy theory that the chief minister post rotation system
was implemented to allow UMNO to control the post permanently by
abolishing the whole system once it was UMNO's turn to hold the post.
It has never been proven but it is considered impossible for UMNO to
get a hold of the post through any other method. The conspiracy theory
was brought up once again when a division from UMNO proposed to
implement the same rotation system in Penang, when it was under BN
rule. It was one of the two states which were not controlled by UMNO
but was under BN rule (the other state being Sarawak). The proposal was
raised even though UMNO abolished the system in Sabah by declaring it a
failure.[citation needed]
UMNO had a
quick rise to power since its entry into Sabah in 1991 where before
that both eastern Malaysian states were not penetrated by the party,
whose president is the de facto leader of the ruling coalition BN and
automatically the Prime Minister of Malaysia. This has
given rise to dissent as the chief minister rotation system was halted
just as UMNO was holding the post. Thus the 2004 general elections saw
widespread disillusionment, coupled with an ineffectual opposition. The
state assembly is now dominated by the ruling party BN with only one
seat held by an opposition politician who is an independent candidate.
This was caused by a general sentiment where a number of voters were
reluctant to cast votes for BN whose victory was almost assured but did
not trust the opposition parties, most of which were not vigorously
active before the election. Therefore many cast votes for independent
candidates.[citation needed]
Sabah politics, as are Malaysia's, is very much based upon party lines.
An effort by PBS, a component party of BN, to hatch a co-operation with
the one opposition candidate within the state assembly, who conversely
was a former UMNO member competing independently because he was not
nominated for the constituency by his party, in an unprecedented
attempt at bipartisanship, was harshly criticized by UPKO, another
component party of BN.
Chief Ministers of Sabah
Year
Chief Minister
1963-1964
Tun Fuad Stephens
1965-1967
Datuk Peter Lo Sui Yin
1967-1975
Tun Mustapha Datu Harun
1975-1976
Tun Said Keruak
1976 (44
days)
Tun Fuad Stephens
1976-1985
Datuk Harris Mohd Salleh
1985-1994
Datuk Seri Joseph Pairin Kitingan
1994-1995
Tun Sakaran Dandai
1995-1996
Datuk Salleh Tun Said Keruak
1996-1998
Datuk Yong Teck Lee
1998-1999
Tan Sri Bernard Dompok (now
UPKO)
1999-2001
Datuk Seri Osu Haji Sukam
2001-2003
Tan Sri Chong Kah Kiat
2003–present
Datuk Seri Musa Aman
Administrative divisions
Sabah
consists of five administrative divisions, which are in turn divided
into 24 districts.
These administrative divisions are, for all purposes, just for
reference. During the British rule until the transition period when Malaysia was formed, a
Resident was appointed to govern each division and provided with a
palace (Istana). This means that the British considered each of these
divisions equivalent to a Malayan state. The post of the Resident was
abolished in favour of district officers for each of the district.
Local Government
As in the rest of Malaysia,
local government comes under the purview of state governments[citation
needed]. However, ever since the suspension of local government
elections in the midst of the Malaysian Emergency, which was much less
intense in Sabah than it was in the rest of the country, there have
been no local elections. Local authorities have their officials
appointed by the executive council of the state government.
Urban centers and ports
There are currently 7 ports in Sabah: Kota Kinabalu
Port, Sepanggar Bay Container Port, Sandakan Port, Tawau
Port, Kudat Port, Kunak Port, and Lahad Datu Port. These ports are
operated and maintained by Sabah Ports Authority.[28] The major towns
and city are:
| Rank |
City |
Population[29] |
| 1 |
Kota Kinabalu |
532,129 |
| 2 |
Sandakan |
448,074 |
| 3 |
Tawau |
349,962 |
| 4 |
Lahad Datu |
119,938 |
| 5 |
Keningau |
97,152 |
| 6 |
Semporna |
71,157 |
| 7 |
Kudat |
34,481 |
Notable Sabahans
Politics and governance
Mat Salleh
was a Bajau leader who led a rebellion against British North Borneo
Company administration in North Borneo. Under his leadership, the
rebellion which lasted from 1894 to 1900 razed the British
Administration Centre on Pulau Gaya and exercised control over
Menggatal, Inanam, Ranau and Tambunan. The rebellion was by Bajaus,
Dusuns and Muruts.[5]
Antanum or
Antanom (full name Ontoros Antonom) (1885–1915) was a famous and
influential Murut warrior who led the chiefs and villagers from
Keningau, Tenom, Pensiangan and Rundum to start the Rundum uprising
against the British North Borneo Company but was killed during fighting
with the company army in Sungai Selangit near Pensiangan.
Another
notable Sabahan is Donald Stephens who helped form the state of Sabah
under the UN appointed Cobbold commission. He was an initial opponent
of Malaysia but was
persuaded by Lee Kuan Yew with an offer of 8 university places for
Sabahan students at the University of Malaya, Singapore[citation
needed].
Donald
Stephens was the first Huguan Siou or paramount leader of the
Kadazan-dusun and Murut people.
Tun Datu
Mustapha was a Bajau-Kagayan-Suluk Muslim political leader in Sabah
through the United Sabah National Organisation (USNO) party.[9] He was
a vocal supporter of Malaysia
but fell out of favor with Malayan leaders despite forming UMNO
branches in Saba and deregistering USNO. Efforts to reregister USNO
have not been allowed, unlike UMNO that was allowed to be reregistered
under the same name.[33][citation needed]
Former Chief
Minister Joseph Pairin Kitingan is the current Huguan Siou and the
President of Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS). Pairin, the longest serving
chief minister of the state and one of the first Kadazandusun lawyers,
was known for his defiance of the federal government in the 1980s and
90s in promoting the rights of Sabah and speaking out against the
illegal immigration problems. Sabah was at the time one of only two
states with opposition governments in power, the other being Kelantan.
PBS has since rejoined BN and Datuk Pairin is currently the Deputy
Chief Minister of Sabah.
The 8th and
current Attorney General of Malaysia,
Abdul Gani
Patail, comes from Sabah.
In 2006,
Penampang-born Richard Malanjum was appointed Chief Judge of Sabah and
Sarawak and became the first Kadazandusun to hold such a post.
Datuk Hj.
Railey bin Hj. Jeffery was the first and well-known Cocos political
leader. He was the Deputy Information Minister and the JKR Deputy
Minister in the 1990s.
Hons. Penny Wong was the well known Sabah born appointed as Australian
Minister for Climate Change, Energy Efficiency and Water. She's born in
Kota Kinabalu
(1968) before moving to Australia in age 5.
Showbiz
Sabah has
produced a fair number of well-known media figures. With the advent of
Satellite TV in Malaysia,
Sabah produced more breakthrough artist compared to 4 decades before.
- Actors:
Marsha Milan Londoh, Farid Amirul Hisham('Gerak Khas' as Lim), Fung Bo
Bo, Chung Shuk Wai, Tony Francis Gitom (filmmaker)
- Broadcasting:
Daphne Iking, Kamaruddin Mape, Farish Aziz
- Radio Disc
Jockey: Maryanne Raymond(Mary), Constantine Anthony(Constantine),
Shahrizan Ferouz(The Shaz), Fadhil bin Luqman(Fad Da Dillio); all from
TraXX FM. DJ Johnboy Lee of hitz.fm, DJ Othoe of Suria FM
- Modelling: Guess model Amber Chia
- Musicians
& Composers: Guitarist Roger Wang, Composer Julfekar and Asmin Mudin
- Singers:
Nazrey Johani of Raihan, Azharina Azhar, Peter Dicky Lee, Pete Teo,
Jerome Kugan, Mia Palencia, Yan Qing, Gary Cao
- Band &
Groups: JIAJA , E-Voke, One Nation Emcees, B.A.D. Boys, Lotter &
Divine Masters, Richael Gimbang with Estranged
- Highly Acclaimed International Furniture
Designer: TL Bong
- Internet Star/Internet Celebrity:
Abangben & Moonboy (Melbourne Shuffle)
- International Artists: Chenelle
Publishing
Sabah's first established
newspaper was the New Sabah Times. The newspaper was founded by Tun
Fuad Stephens, who later became the first Chief Minister of Sabah.
American author Agnes Newton Keith lived in Sandakan between
1934–1952 and wrote several books about Sabah. Sabah was also the main
location for the filming of the 1937 American documentary based on the
adventures of Martin and Osa Johnson titled Borneo.
In the Earl Mac Rauch novelization of Buckaroo Banzai (Pocket Books,
1984; repr. 2001), and in the DVD commentary, Buckaroo's archenemy
Hanoi Xan is said to have his secret base in Sabah, in a "relic city of
caves."
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