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Under Abang Jo, Sarawak is asserting its personality - one move at a time
The state in Borneo and its leader are quietly making headway in advancing Sarawak's interests by leveraging its electoral power in federal politics.
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Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg, or Abang Jo, heads the government in the East Malaysian state of Sarawak.
ST PHOTO: FELINE LIM
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Careful chroniclers of South-east Asian transitions may have noticed a small event that took place in Sarawak's Kota Samarahan in early March, when the Chapel of the Sacred Heart was inaugurated within the compound of the Sarawak Heart Centre, a government facility.
Score one for Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg, current head of government in the East Malaysian state, whose Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) coalition was returned with a landslide 76 of 82 seats in state assembly elections held last December. The result was an improvement from the previous state election in Malaysia's only non-Muslim majority state, when the GPS coalition, then under the Barisan Nasional banner, got 72 seats.
