KUCHING – Kg Quop, which translates in English as the “Village of Yawn”, has now come alive with the flags and banners of political parties fluttering in the wind.
The sleepy hollow now sees colourful fanfare daily, with party workers still seen racing against time to put up more billboards and banners even as tomorrow’s polls approach.
They have also been seen putting upright flagpoles that had fallen due to strong winds that frequently lash the village of 3,000 residents.
Kg Quop, a polling district under the Stakan constituency, will be embroiled in a four-cornered clash between Datuk Hamzah Brahim (Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu under Gabungan Parti Sarawak, GPS-PBB), George Young Si Ricord Junior (Parti Sarawak Bersatu), Leslie Ting Xiang Zhi (DAP), and Atet Dego (Parti Bumi Kenyalang).
Former incumbent Mohammad Ali Mahmud is not defending his seat this time around, having made way for GPS-PBB newbie Datuk Hamzah Brahim.
Whether Hamzah will be able to hold the fort for GPS-PBB is not an easy guess, but folks here have expressed their wish for change, calling for new development projects in the village.
One resident, speaking anonymously, told The Vibes that people in the village lack some basic infrastructure.
There is no public transport service here. For decades, we have been denied a decent transportation system. The nearest town is about 5km away in Kota Padawan.
“When the young people leave for work, the senior citizens here are left at home. They have no way of getting out and about to do their shopping or meet up with friends to chat over coffee.”
The resident, who works for a cultural foundation under the patronage of a state minister, said a reliable and frequent bus service plying the route between the village and Kota Padawan would make a big difference.
“Even schoolchildren who have extracurricular activities have to depend on their parents to send them to school and bring them home. This is inconvenient as most parents are working and private school buses do not operate after regular school hours.
“Asking for this issue to be addressed by the powers that be would be trivial to some, but it means a lot to those who are affected in this way,” he said.
Another resident, Rosinei Madrod, told The Vibes that they seem to be getting benefits only when it is election time.
“We have been asking for proper road names and signboards in the village for decades, and the project was finally put in place last year. At least now, we get our mail directly from the postman.
“All these years, the mail has gone to an appointed postal agent from whom we collect our letters and parcels. Sometimes, people forget to collect their mail and the postal agent is inundated with uncollected mail.
“Now, we also get the services of courier companies delivering our parcels right up to our doorstep.
“The residents also asked for a guardrail to be installed at a dangerous curve in the access road to the village close to a small lake. It was dangerous for vehicles and motorcyclists, especially at night. If they lose control of their vehicles they could end up plunging into the lake.
“Finally, we got this guardrail in place, courtesy of the Kota Padawan Municipal Council. It was put in place just days ago. It goes without saying that election time is ‘goodies season’ for us.
“Although we are thankful, we hope we do not have to wait every four years for projects to be implemented in the village,” said Roseini.
On another note, Roseini said the residents here could benefit from potential human development projects for women and youth.
“The youth in the village, after dropping out of school, are left living life aimlessly. It is during this time that they become attracted to negative social influences.
“These individuals need appropriate programmes to be motivated and become better citizens, instead of wasting their youth away. We need facilities for them to engage in healthy pursuits, and to take up skills training and find employment,” he said.
Roseini said the government must have well-structured plans for women and youth in rural areas.
“I would like to see a micro-credit programme for women and youth as well, so that they can improve their economic welfare,” she added.
Positive vibes from the grapevine
Roseini’s husband, David Ong, a Bidayuh-Chinese, said that if what he is hearing through the village grapevine is true, there may be a big surprise from this polling district under the Stakan constituency.
He said people here are pining for a refreshing change and he thinks a new dawn will rise in Kg Quop.
Ong, who is also a DAP observer, says the tale of the tape indicates that apart from Ting, the DAP candidate here, all the other candidates are newbies who have never set foot in Kg Quop before.
“Voters will recognise candidates they frequently meet and are familiar with. Apart from Ting, all the other candidates are unrecognisable. This gives Ting a head start.”
The other polling districts in the Stakan constituency are Merdang, Sidanu, and Pengkalan Quop.
“If it is true that the voters here want to see change, then Ting has a better chance of gaining the majority vote from Kg Quop, which could possibly boost the overall total vote-count for him, in addition to the votes he might secure from the other polling districts of Stakan,” he said.
According to Ong, in the 2016 state polls, Ting was a last-minute candidate selected to stand against Ali in a straight fight.
“He was not prepared then and lost to Ali by a majority of 7,042 votes. This time around, he might possibly get huge support from this polling district as he has been a frequent visitor on the ground here, and in the other polling districts as well.
“He had always made it a point to visit the village whenever the village was hit by floods when it rains heavily,” he said.
Ting was also involved in distributing food and dry groceries to the villagers on several occasions when it was hit by Covid-19 lockdowns early this year.
From DAP footman to candidate
Met recently during one of his walkabouts in the village, Ting, who is only 30 years old, comes across as an astute political amateur.
He is not given to casual rhetoric – neither downplays his opponents’ strengths nor overestimates his own ability to garner votes.
Ting was a DAP footman for years before being elevated to stand as a candidate in Stakan.
The accountancy graduate had been exposed to politics and DAP from the time he was a schoolboy, selling the party’s news organ The Rocket in street corners.
His parents are both DAP supporters and it was this experience and attending political meetings with his parents that had fuelled his interest in politics.
“There are still many problems in this constituency. Local residents are facing low water pressure. They also face the problem of frequent floods whenever there is a heavy downpour.
“In some parts of the village, residents do not have the most basic living facilities. There is no water or electricity supply and a proper garbage disposal system,” Ting said.
“If given the mandate, I want to bring these issues to the state assembly. Also, most of the people here are in the working class. They need support to uplift their economic welfare. I want to highlight the need to uplift the people’s welfare,” Ting added.
As Ting ramps up his campaigning in Stakan less than a day before the state election tomorrow, he cuts the lone figure of a serious backroom strategist eager to push for the change this Bidayuh heartland is pining for.
Yesterday, party veteran and DAP national chairman Lim Kit Siang joined Ting in his walkabout campaign in Kg Quop.
This boosted his morale and heightened his confidence towards convincing the voter bank that he is the right man for Stakan.
So far, since nomination day, Sarawak has seen a cavalcade of colourful politicians issuing their high-pressure salesmanship during walkabouts or via cold calls on the digital stage – all vending their candidacy and widening their mass appeal.
Some offer jingoistic nationalism and others offer economic welfare. Ting is pushing for the latter, and it is all embedded in his constituency’s maxim: “Sarawak Forward”. – The Vibes, December 17, 2021
