RETURN POWER OF POLITICS TO RAKYAT, NOT ELITES - EWON

Datuk Ewon Benedick

19 July 2021

By Wartawan Nabalu News

PENAMPANG: Vice President of the United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation (Upko) Datuk Ewon Benedick said the politics in the country should be returned to the people, not be held by the elites.

He said the havoc in the administration of the present-day government was due to the political chess of the elite politicians who have been in the leadership for a long time, but no longer listened to the pulse of the people.

"It is time for the politics of this country to be retained by the people as they demanded independence and established a Malaysian federation.

“The leadership at that time came directly from the people. Today those who are already the elites dominate the political chess simply because they want to maintain their positions. We do not want only a certain group of politicians to dominate the country's leadership.

"We want the people to stand up and make demands, and make decisions during the election. We no longer want this politics to be a family heritage, it should be the people's heritage," he said when presenting his views during the Leader of the People's Fights webinar session, last night.

Ewon who was also one of the panels was responding to Nabalu News reporter when asked to further elaborate his views.

According to him, his party, like other parties, aims to provide the best service to the people, among others.

Upko needs to provide a balance as a policymaking-oriented party and a grassroots service-oriented party, he added.

"As we are facing a health crisis following the Covid-19 pandemic, we need to work with all parties. We can effectively play the role to check and balance but at the same time work with others, including the Government, to ensure the people are protected during the crisis.

"Apart from immediate assistance such as the food basket programmes, we can work with the Government to ramp up the vaccination campaign by mobilising the party machinery to campaign on the benefits. This is one of the things we can implement," he stated.

Ewon who is also the Kadamaian State Assemblyman mentioned that hundreds of thousands of people affected in the aspects of income and education and undergoing trying times need to be defended through the efforts of all parties which can only be implemented through cooperation.

"Upko can explore this cooperation starting by identifying the people who choose to be members of the party and need protection. This can be the basis of cooperation for our proposed Confidence and Supply Agreement (CSA) with the Government," he suggested.

He also opined that many leaders in any party only want to be part of the Government's administration but rarely be part of the service to the people.

"Since joining the party leadership in 2005, I have observed that many want to be the Government because they feel they will have access to many facilities.

"But they very rarely want to serve the people because their motivations are different. That's why to me, there is wisdom behind Upko being outside the Government for the time being.

"Since the establishment of the party, we have always been in the Government. When we are no longer in the Government, there are big challenges in the leadership but we can always identify a person's personality based on perseverance in facing the challenge," he said.

When asked how he managed to defend the Kadamaian state seat in the state general election last year, Ewon said, leadership dedication based on the people's vision was his approach during his leadership in Kadamaian.

"I learned a lot about Upko's leadership, from Tan Sri Bernard Dompok to Datuk Madius Tangau, the Supreme Council and my friends in the Komulakan Movement before. My leadership is not perfect, that's why I will continue to learn and improve myself.

"However, since becoming the Kadamaian Assemblyman in 2018, I have made the vision of the constituents my vision. That is why I initiated the 2020-2035 Kadamaian Development Master Plan where a six-month study was conducted by the Sabah Institute of Development Studies (IDS), Kadamaian Assemblyman Service Centre and UPPM Kadamaian Office in 2019. They travelled to all corners of Kadamaian, meeting residents in 74 villages.

"The study is a documentation of the vision of development by the people of Kadamaian, and I take it as my responsibility and trust as an Assemblyman. When we lift the vision of the people like this, then it is clear that we at Upko can be leaders in the people's fights."

Apart from Ewon, Upko Deputy President Datuk Donald Mojuntin and Upko Kinabatangan Women Leader, Mohina Sindom also served as the webinar's panellists.