Subtle tension is reshaping Tawau’s politics, not through open hostility, but through quiet anxiety over identity and influence.
In Tawau, people have begun using a new word to explain an old fear.
They call it “Sempornaninasi” (Sempornisation), a local term that reflects a quiet unease about the growing political reach of its neighbouring constituency – and Warisan power base – as well as the belief among some communities that power could slowly be slipping away.
The word is not found in campaign slogans or speeches, yet it surfaces in…
