KOTA KINABALU – Undi Sabah held its inaugural online event at the Hilton Kota Kinabalu on Saturday, where they offered youths in Sabah access to different political perspectives in the run up to the upcoming state elections.
A youth empowerment initiative by #Undi18, the inaugural event was non-partisan in nature and aims to promote education for youth voters as well as participation in political discussions related to the state election.
The event is scheduled to last for two days and will involve keynote speeches from election candidates.
There were also discussions with selected panel members on hot issues affecting the local youth community.
Undi 18 avocation director Qyira Yusri said the online event was meant as a platform for Sabahan youth.
"It’s the first to happen in Sabah. The event aims to fill the gap in voter education in a bipartisan manner.
“The event features politicians from both sides and civil society leaders. So it's a place for youths to hear different perspectives without being judged.”
Undi 18 advocacy director Tharma Pillai said they sought to showcase a variety of speakers, so young Sabahans could make an informed choice.
"In tomorrow’s Undi Sabah session we hope to portray different types of people from different parties so they can have a say and share what they want to do and achieve.
"Today it was a full house and we had more than 10,000 people viewing the programme. So in terms of interest from the public towards the programme we have definitely achieved our target."
Yesterday’s event saw Parti Cinta Sabah candidate Ansari Abdullah as a speaker, with former Belia Sabah member of Parliament Shafiqah Zairina, Senator Adrian Lasimbang, Anne Lasimbang from Pacos Trust as panellists, and local radio host Amy Dangin as moderator.
Meanwhile, The Vibes executive editor Manvir Victor addressed the forum, stating the editorial position of the portal, which would be in the middle ground and fair.
"This is in line with our tagline ‘From Every Side’," he said.
Manvir said The Vibes will look at collaborating with organisations such as Undi Sabah to educate the electorate on their rights and obligations as voters.
Undi18 is a Malaysian youth movement that successfully advocated for the amendment of Article 119(1) of the Federal Constitution to reduce the minimum voting age in Malaysia from 21 to 18 years of age, in July 2019.
The movement was officially launched with a memorandum to then-prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak in April 2017. – The Vibes, September 20, 2020
