He is young, but not that young, and ready to speak up for Sarawak, particularly its youths, in the Parliament. Meet Lukanisman Awang Sauni, Barisan Nasional’s new face for the Sibuti parliamentary seat.
At 36, Lukanisman is the youngest candidate fielded by Sarawak BN for the upcoming 14th General Election (GE14) but he is not the youngest; the youngest candidate for the parliamentary seat is 22 years old in Semananjung Malaysia.
Long before he was picked by Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), the backbone party of Sarawak BN, to stand in Sibuti in the GE14, Lukanisman has been getting close to the people of Sibuti in his capacity as the Special Affairs Department (Jasa) officer for the Sibuti parliamentary area.
For the past few years, he has assisted his mentor and the incumbent for Sibuti, Datuk Ahmad Lai Bujang, 68, in his political and social work in the constituency. Ahmad of PBB was a two-term Member of Parliament for Sibuti before he announced late last month that he would not defend the seat due to health reasons.
Ahmad worked for the Chief Minister of Sarawak then, Tun Pehin Sri Haji Abdul Taib Mahmud before he was fielded by the Sarawak BN for the Sibuti seat in the General Election in 2008. He was elected to the Parliament after he scored 8,238 votes to beat his sole opponent, Michael Teo of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), who obtained 4,590 votes.
Five years later, in the last General Election (GE13), Ahmad was re-elected Sibuti Member of Parliament when he scored 13,348 votes to beat his opponent, Muhammad Zaid Tandang of PKR who obtained 7,282 votes.
The increased votes he received in the last General Election showed that the people of Sibuti were happy with Ahmad’s good work as a Member of Parliament and grateful for the tremendous progress he had brought them. In the GE14, Lukanisman is involved in a three-corner fight for the Sibuti seat; his opponents are Jemat Panjang of PKR and Zulaihi Bakar of PAS.
All over the world, young political candidates are gaining ground. In Malaysia, including Sarawak, the fairer sex are clamouring for more participation of women in the Parliament and State Assemblies. Likewise, the young people are also asking for more participation in the August Houses.
In March this year, just before the announcement of the Nomination Day and Polling Day for the GE14, United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) Youth had requested, through Minister for Youth and Sports, Datuk Khairy Jamaluddin, for more young candidates in the General Election.
UMNO is a founding member of the BN coalition in Malaysia and no doubt, the wish for more young candidates was also made known to other BN components in Sarawak and other states.
Not much is known about Lukanisman personally because he is new to politics. He was among the 12 new faces announced by Sarawak BN Chairman and Chief Minister, Datuk Patinggi (Dr) Abang Johari Tun Openg for the GE14.
Not long after Lukanisman was fielded by the Sarawak BN for the Sibuti seat, rumours were rife that he was contesting as the future son-in-law to the Sibuti incumbent, Ahmad.
Lukanisman vigorously denied the rumours and told a Sarawak daily that he found the rumours “quite funny.”
He hinted he “already had someone in his heart” but was currently concentrating on building his political career. He added he had been busy taking care of his father, a stroke patient, and his mother, who was old.
Lukanisman, who hails originally from Kampung Dagang in Miri, has a bachelor’s degree in science with honours majoring in policies and science technology from Universiti Malaya.
If elected to the Parliament, the BN candidate for Sibuti should have no problems reaching out to people from all walks of life including women, youths and the elderly because of his ten years of experience as an officer of the Special Affairs Department (Jasa) and because he had worked closely with Sibuti incumbent and his mentor, Ahmad. Because he is young, Lukanisman will naturally seek greater participation from the youths in all aspects of Sibuti’s development.
In an interview with the press recently, he said: “ We are now witnessing a major change both at the state and national levels. As a young candidate, I will certainly bring the youth agenda in line with National Transformation 2050 (TN50) and I will also be supporting the state government’s current mission of getting back more Sarawak rights which are enshrined in the MA63 (Malaysia Agreement 1963).”
The BN candidate also pledged to focus on education in the Sibuti constituency and build more affordable houses in Niah and Lambir.
Lukanisman also told Bernama, the Malaysian National News Agency: “Besides focusing on improving infrastructure, requesting funds to repair dilapidated schools and increasing affordable housing projecrs, youths will be given special attention, too.”
Believing that youths could play a prominent role in the constituency, he added: “ Give me time, I will work out a strategy for the youths in the Sibuti parliamentary constituency to participate in nation building, particularly in digital economy as emphasised by the state government.”
Lukanisman’s grand visions augur well for the future of Sibuti, especially its youths.
