RSIS Seminar by Dr Arnold Puyok, Head of Department of Politics and International Relations, Faculty of Social Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak

Lecture Abstract:

The Sarawak state election which is expected to be called by end of April this year will be closely watched, as it will be taken as a litmus test of the efforts thus far of the new and highly popular chief minister, Adenan Satem. Adenan, who has asked Sarawakian voters to give him another five years to implement his reform agenda for Sarawak, will face increasingly demanding voters, whose expectations include a more transparent, responsive and efficient government. Sarawak is the only state in the federation of Malaysia that conducts its state election separately from the national elections. The ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition has been in power since independence. Even as his personal popularity waned, Adenan’s predecessor, Abdul Taib Mahmud, still won Sarawak elections with more than a two-thirds majority, giving the ruling coalition wide-ranging legislative powers. Will Adenan be able to repeat the same victory in the face of growing public disenchantment towards the federal BN government? Crucially, in light of declining ethnic Chinese support for the BN nationwide, Adenan is under particular pressure to increase the ruling coalition’s seats in Chinese areas that are currently under the opposition Democratic Action Party’s (DAP) solid control. Whether Adenan and the BN can deliver the strong win BN leaders seek depends not only on the incumbent Chief Minister’s own record and popularity, but also campaign strategy among all contestants: how well the BN and its challengers accurately read and respond to what Sarawak voters want.

About the Speaker:

Dr Arnold Puyok is currently the Head of Department of Politics and International Relations at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak. Dr Puyok’s works on contemporary Malaysian politics especially Sabah and Sarawak have been published in Asian Journal of Political Science, Journal of Contemporary Southeast Asia and Kajian Malaysia. He also regularly contributes to The Malaysian Insider, Malaysiakini, The Malay Mail Online, Daily Express, The Borneo Post and East Asia Forum. Dr Puyok’s research interests are the politics of federal-state relations, ethnic politics, electoral competition, politics and society, and contemporary Southeast Asian politics. His latest published articles are “The Appeal and Future of Borneo Agenda” (in Johan S, Lee H. G, Mohamed Nawab, SIRD, Petaling Jaya) and “Rise of Christian Political Consciousness and Mobilisation” (in Weiss, M., Routledge, UK). Dr Puyok also blogs at http://arnoldpuyokpoliticalinsights.blogspot.com/.