KOTA KINABALU, April 26 — Named after two historical figures, UPKO’s Ceasar Mandela Malakun has a lot to live up to.
But in Sabah, it is his family name — Malakun — that carries greater weight than the names of Roman general Julius Caesar and South African revolutionary Nelson Mandela.
The 28-year-old Ceasar Mandela, better known as Mandela, is a leading contender for Barisan Nasional (BN) to contest the coveted Penampang parliamentary seat.
“I like when people say that my age is a deterrent. They think I’m too young, but I like the challenge. I like proving people wrong. I wouldn’t be the youngest person to get into politics after all,” Mandela told Malay Mail.
“Nurul Izzah [Anwar] was 27 when she became a YB, as was Sabah’s own Datuk Yong Teck Lee. Peter Mojuntin was only 24 when he became the first Sabahan to address the United Nations.
“I think I am, in fact, falling behind when compared to these other Sabahan heroes,” he added.
Mandela grew up in the shadow of his father Datuk Seri Clarence Bongkos Malakun, a seasoned politician who now heads a state government think-tank.
The older Malakun is known as the underdog in a David-Goliath story, an old-school Sabahan Opposition politician who once defeated the mighty BN Chief Minister Tan Sri Bernard Dompok.
Despite growing up with such an illustrious father figure, Mandela and his seven siblings were not groomed for politics.
Mandela, a UK law graduate, showed more interest in entrepreneurship and was working for the family’s property and construction firm before he got pulled into the periphery of politics with the Kadazandusun Cultural Association Youth Council.
Within a short time, the young Mandela captured the attention of UPKO president, Datuk Wilfred Madius Tangau.
Mandela is hotly favoured against other possible candidates for Penampang, including Upko Penampang economy and welfare bureau chairman, Steven Jimbangan; former Penampang district officer, William Sampil; and Upko Youth chief, Carl Moosom.
The chosen candidate is expected to take on incumbent Darell Leiking, a former PKR vice-president who defeated Dompok handsomely with a 10,216-vote majority in the 2013 election. Leiking is now with Warisan.
Mandela said his calling came only recently, when he met youths who felt they were disconnected from politics.
“The people I met, even my peers, felt they had no voice in the system, and had no role to play. They wanted to get involved, but didn’t get heard.
“From my experience working with Upko and their approach, I think there really is space for youth in the system that will help shape government policies. It is a win-win because BN also needs young blood to rejuvenate the system,” he said.
Despite his youth, Mandela claims that aside from learning from his father’s political past, he has experience being in the construction and property industry, which has taught him a lot about government policies, how government departments work and local politics.
During his short stint with a local law firm, Mandela said he already had his fingers in many pies, including an ailing watermelon business. But he said it taught him the value of taking a risk taker and learning from the bottom up.
“I invested something like RM5,500 in a random watermelon business. I was hands on and even looked around for cheaper chicken manure. My dad thought I had gone crazy, but I earned money from it, and I really enjoyed giving out watermelons as gifts for a while,” he laughed.
Mandela’s business proclivity is not surprising. While his father had all sorts of roles within and outside government, his mother is the daughter of property tycoon, Datuk Seri Wong Kwok.
“But I can tell you that they did not spoil us. All of us siblings were taught the value of education and working hard,” he said, insisting that despite his privileged background, he was not spared from hardship.
Recently mourning the death of his partner in a car accident, Mandela said he went through one of the worst periods of his life, which forced him to re-evaluate his choices and priorities.
“I think it made me want to prioritise the important things in life — like family, true friends and leaving a legacy behind. I might have joined politics anyway, but I think I would’ve taken a longer time to decide,” he said.
The timing of his entry into politics is opportune because it is largely acknowledged that the KDM — acronym for Kadazandusun Murut, but referring to non-Muslim natives — are politically split. Many are seen to straddle the proverbial fence, but leaning towards the Opposition as Putrajaya continues to ignore their calls for more control over state affairs.
In Penampang, the heartland of the Kadazandusun which is said to reflect the voice of the KDM community, voters showed their displeasure for BN by voting out Dompok again in 2013 in favour of political upstart Leiking.
Leiking is the son of longtime political player Datuk Marcel Leiking, who was a prominent leader with the BN-aligned Berjaya government that was deposed by PBS in the mid-80s.
“I think they know that Sabahans’ rights have to be returned. This whole thing about sidelining the KDM started even before I was born. We were neglected before, but they’re paying us more attention now. I think with the new leadership coming in, we’ll be able to achieve more in the next five years than previously,” Mandela said.
When asked why people should vote for him instead of Leiking, Mandela was candid.
“Because I’m on the winning team,” he said.
“Every Sabahan wants Sabah rights returned. But the utopian dream being sold by the Opposition is falsely raising people’s hopes. At the end of the day, it is between stability, and possible progress... or an empty dream.
“When the Opposition does not win again, they will miss the train that can bring development to the district. It is more effective to fight for it from within the system,” he said.
He reasoned that the problems in Penampang, a KDM-majority area with 51 per cent KDM and 29 per cent Chinese, are straightforward. People want better infrastructure (the basics are there, but residents want infrastructure upgraded); education (most are educated, but not in the subjects they are passionate about); and lastly, employment opportunities.
Mandela is confident that he can find solutions, including setting up a job centre and a public monitoring system to track government projects, as well as creating key performance indicators (KPIs) for himself.
“In fact, I do not know why this hasn’t been done yet. I would put my position on the line and be the first elected representative to have a ‘live’ monitoring system through which people can continuously monitor progress and achievements on my promises. That way, anyone can check at any time how much is being done,” he said.
Mandela’s ambitions and idealism may seem laughable to political cynics, but he is optimistic that a new wave of change will take place, one that will give youths a chance at nation-building.
“We know it’s an uphill battle, but I feel strongly about it. So whatever it is, win or lose, I will continue the struggle.
“As long as I get [my] message across that youths should get more involved and have more of a voice in the community, then I feel I am doing something right,” he said.
