Ewon Benedick

Ewon Benedick (born 1 August 1983) is a Malaysian politician who has served as Minister of Entrepreneur and Cooperatives Development in the Anwar Ibrahim Cabinet since December 2022, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Penampang since November 2022 and Member of the Sabah State Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Kadamaian since May 2018. He served as State Minister of Rural Development of Sabah in the Sabah Heritage Party (WARISAN) administration under former Chief Minister Shafie Apdal from May 2018 to the collapse of the WARISAN state administration in September 2020. He is a member of the United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation (UPKO), a component party of the PH coalition. He has served as the 3rd President of UPKO since January 2023. He was also Vice President of UPKO before his promotion to the party presidency in January 2023. He is one of the two UPKO MPs and sole UPKO MLA. He was set to officially take over Wilfred Madius Tangau as the 3rd UPKO president after the UPKO party election in the party triennial delegates convention on 16 October 2022. However on 10 October 2022, the 14th Parliament was dissolved and the 2022 general election was to be held on 19 November 2022, the convention was delayed to 15 January 2023.

Political career

Ewon Benedick made his electoral debut in the 2018 Sabah state election and contested in the state constituency of Kadamaian and managed to regain the seat which was won by Parti Keadilan Rakyat in the 2013 Malaysian general election. As a result of United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation decision to quit Barisan Nasional in the aftermath of 2018 Malaysian general election. Ewon was appointed as State Minister of Rural Development of Sabah. Following the collapse of the Parti Warisan Sabah government in Sabah in 2020, a snap election was held, where he defended his seat despite United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation's poor showing in the state election with him being the only state assemblyman from United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation.

In the 2022 Malaysian general election, Ewon went up against 2-term incumbent Darell Leiking. who was also a former federal minister in the parliamentary seat of Penampang and managed to win the seat with a 14,000 plus majority. On 12 December 2023, Ewon Benedick was appointed as the new Minister of Entrepreneur and Co-operatives Development in the new cabinet. He is presently the youngest member of Anwar Ibrahim Cabinet.

On 14 January 2023, Ewon took over the presidency of United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation.

In September 2023 after launching the a state native customary laws literacy seminar, Ewon said that he along with his party comrades in United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation and Pakatan Harapan will continue the fight to elevate Sabah’s native court to be on equal footing with the civil and syariah courts, He said the state has all these three court systems but the native court, which presides over matters involving customary rights and practices of the state’s Kadazandusun Murut Rungus (KDMR) community, was considered as the lesser compared to the other two.

In January 2024, Ewon stated that United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation will submit a suggested mechanism for the 40 per cent federal revenue payback to Sabah. He said that the suggestion was the result of discussions by Upko leaders with several experts, including lawyers, former magistrates, accountants, as well as taxation experts and auditors.

Election results

Honours

•  Sabah :
  • Commander of the Order of Kinabalu (PGDK) – Datuk (2018)

References