Abang Jo – The making of ‘Father of Modern Sarawak’
IN January 2024, Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Abang Openg (popularly known as ‘Abang Jo’) celebrated his seventh year as the Premier of Sarawak – the sixth in line since Sarawak became part of Malaysia in 1963.
During a Chinese New Year visit at a gathering in Sibu on Tuesday, Feb 13, 2024, Abang Jo made his stand as Premier loud and clear: “We are very humble people. What we want is stability, a strong government, and focus on the people’s need so that Sarawak will prosper towards 2030.
“Some say that Sarawak is the linchpin in Malaysia – that we decide what happens in the country.
“We have to manage it properly.”
Abang Jo had gone one step further to say that he would look towards our nearest neighbour for inspiration.
“We have to get experts to do that (the country’s redevelopment plans) – Singapore did the same thing; they were once a slum with a lot of water, but today, it is totally different.
“If Singapore can do it, Sarawak also can do it with the support of everybody!”
Over the past seven years, the Premier has been personally responsible for much of the modernisation that we have seen throughout the state. After the recent slowdown and stagnation during the coronavirus pandemic years, he pioneered the ‘Post Covid-19 Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030’ which will see, among other targets, the takeover of Bintulu Port, MASwings and Affin Bank, and also the transformation of Sarawak into a green economy.
In terms of revenue for the state, under his administration there has already been increases to RM11 billion in 2022, and RM13.3 billion in 2023. It is forecast that this will be another year of incremental revenues, deriving from additional new streams of income for the state.
Abang Jo was born in Limbang on Aug 4, 1950 to Tun Abang Openg Abang Sapiee and Toh Puan Dayang Masniah Abdul Rahman. The youngest boy of 10 siblings, he has two younger sisters after him.
His father Tun Openg was the first Governor, now called the Yang di-Pertua Negeri Sarawak (TYT), appointed in 1963 when Abang Jo was attending Form 1 at St Thomas’ Secondary School in Kuching.
Abang Jo’s earlier education had begun at the Merpati Jepang Primary School in Kuching – he underwent secondary education firstly at St Thomas’ from 1963 to 1967, and then transferred to St Joseph’s thereafter.
After finishing school, Abang Jo then worked for Malaysia Airlines as an executive officer during which time, he had earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from Henley College at Brunel University, England.
In 1973 Abang Jo joined as a member of Parti Pesaka
Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), a component of the then-ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) under the then-Chief Minister of Sarawak Tun Abdul Rahman Ya’kub.
In 1977, at age 27, Abang Jo was appointed as PBB Youth chief.
In 1981, upon the resignation of Tan Sri Abang Abu Bakar Abang Mustapha – then-incumbent for the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) seat of Satok – Abang Jo had stood for the by-election and won the seat comfortably.
In 1982, he was appointed as the principal political secretary to the chief minister.
Abang Jo’s ministerial career started when he was re-elected in the 1983 state election and was appointed as the assistant minister for regional and community development a year later.
During the 1987 state election, he retained his Satok seat and was promoted to a full minister with the portfolio of industrial development.
Between 2000 and 2014, Abang Jo had served as a full minister in various ministries including tourism, housing and urbanisation, until he was promoted to deputy chief minister after the 2016 state polls.
Abang Jo was appointed as the successor to Pehin Sri Adenan Satem, the fifth Chief Minister of Sarawak who had died in office, and sworn in on Jan 13, 2017.
In February 2017, Abang Jo had pledged to continue recognising the Unified Examinations Certificate (UEC) and providing financial help to Chinese schools in Sarawak.
“Sarawak would lose a lot of human capital if it does not recognise UEC,” he had said.
All UEC holders can also apply for jobs in the Sarawak state civil service, and the state government has continued to allocate at least RM10 million each year towards the Chinese schools, with equal amounts having gone to missionary schools as well.
Up till today, the federal government in Kuala Lumpur has refused to recognise the UEC.
In March 2017, Abang Jo had voiced out adamantly in his government’s opposition towards the state’s implementation of the ‘Hudud Law’, saying that he held the same views as his predecessor Adenan.
Under Abang Jo’s leadership, he had established the ‘Other Religious Affairs Unit’ (Unifor) in April 2017 to assist all religions and protect the welfare and interests of Sarawak’s nonMuslims.
Sarawak is the only state in Malaysia to have this unit, thus creating history of sorts. Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas is in charge of Unifor.
A truly multiracial champion at heart and in practice, Abang Jo has also prioritised many projects in the interests of all races in Sarawak – among them the Dayak Cultural Foundation (DCF) development project; the new building of the Dayak Bidayuh National Association (DBNA); the Wisma Melayu Sarawak building; and the Anglican Diocese’s House of Epiphany.
On the issue of land rights, the Premier, in April 2017, had stated that the government would ensure that land owned by the Malay community in the urban centres would remain in the hands of the Malay community and their descendants.
In August 2020, he further announced that the people’s rights to Native Customary Rights (NCR) land would be enhanced in two stages: a perimeter survey measuring under Section 6 of the State Land Code, and the individual lot measurement under Section 18 of the same Code.
In his efforts to hasten the modernisation of Sarawak towards a developed status, Abang Jo is perhaps most wellknown for his digital economy initiatives and plans for Sarawak.
He had established the Sarawak Digital Economy Strategy 2018-2022 with the goal of transforming the state’s economy through digital transformation to attain a high-income status and become a developed state by the year 2030.
Abang Jo established the Sarawak Multimedia Authority (SMA) in 2017 to spearhead its digital economy, and also the Development Bank of Sarawak (DBOS) with the goal of financing projects relating to the Internet, transport, renewal energy sector, oil and gas (O&G), healthcare and agriculture.
One of Abang Jo’s continued challenges with the federal government has been the restoration for the rights of Sarawak as enshrined in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63)
– this has been ongoing since his predecessor’s time and although some concessions and gains have been made in the past two years, the main and most important issues have yet to be fully resolved to the state’s satisfaction.
I would like to conclude on a very personal observation from my experience as a fellow classmate of Abang Jo at St Thomas’, between the years 1963 and 1967.
If Tun Openg is alive today, he would have been very proud to have seen and witnessed the position to which his son has attained and how he has served and governed Sarawak so well and so successfully.
We, as his former classmates, can still remember the days when the Governor’s official car had driven to the school to pick his son up at the dismissal time (and would stand by in awe as his driver helped carry his school bag for him).
In the classroom, Abang Jo was always quiet, humble and surrounded himself with a few friends; neither boastful nor had he ever displayed any form of entitlement.
We could tell from the teenage years already that here was someone whose heart was in the right place. He had made friends with everyone; was never loud or demanding; extremely friendly, helpful, straightforward, honest and down-to-earth.
Although he would attend the usual Islamic celebrations like the annual Prophet Mohammad’s birthday parade, we could always count on visiting him during Hari Raya Aidilfitri, and he would in turn also celebrate the Chinese New Year, Christmas and Gawai Dayak with us as well.
There was not a bone of any racism in him – a true-blue multi-racialist!
I hope and pray – and am certain – that with what he has already put in place the past seven years, the many brilliant ideas that he has already planted, and the future ones he is sure to continue pursuing, that what we have here is the real-deal, true-blue ‘Father of Modern Sarawak’ – Abang Jo.
‘Aim Higher’!