Origins of Sabah claim traced to cockfight incident
Published on: Sunday, May 28, 2023
By: Raymond Tombung
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The claim persists till today, long after a civil war that was caused tragically by a cockfight way back since the fateful day in Brunei in the 17th century. Obviously the claim is based on a blatant lie, and now the government of the Philippines in Manila still persists in pursuing the baseless claim for selfish political motive. - illustration pix by Rove.me
In some decades past in Sabah it was the rage and obsession among the people, including in Tuaran where the Lotuds and the Bajaus became very close cockfighting buddies.
Today the game is banned not just in Malaysia but in many countries as well, mainly for its cruelty to animals but also for close connection to gambling, drug abuse and various acts of violence.
But in ancient time there was no concern for its illegality; rather it was a national past time in the Southeast Asian region where the sport had developed into an almost religious art and practiced by all levels of society, up to the level of the royals.
So during one fateful day in Brunei in 1660 during the rule of Sultan Muhammad Ali, the 12th sultan of Brunei, one such cock fight took to change the history of Sabah.
The son of the Sultan, Pengiran Muda Bongsu and Pengiran Muda Alam (the son of Pengiran Adul Hakkul Mubin the Bendahara or Chief Minister) decided to have a cockfighting session.
Pengiran Muda Bongsu’s cockerel lost the fight, after which Pengiran Muda Alam jeered Bongsu.
Enraged by the insult, Bongsu killed Pengiran Muda Alam with a kris to his chest and took off from the scene and escaped to Sambas in western Indonesia.
The Bendahara, in fury on learning of the death of his beloved son, went marching with his men to the palace to confront the sultan.
“A tooth for a tooth”, Abdul Hakkul Mubin told the sultan, wanting to avenge his son’s death.
The Sultan allowed him to search the palace (other sources say Mubin was disallowed entry) but either way Mubin failed to find Pengiran Muda Bongsu.
Furious, Abdul Hakkul Mubin went amok, and decided to kill everyone in the palace, including members of the royal family! With the help of his men, Abdul Hakkul Mubin killed the Sultan by garroting him to death. This happened in November 1661.
The body of the Sultan was left lying on the grass, so till today he is known as “Marhum Tumbang Di Rumput” (the late King who fell dead on the grass).
Mubin, having satisfied himself after the revenge and having gotten rid of the king and his family, took the throne, declaring himself the new sultan.
In an effort to appease the late sultan’s followers and extended family, Mubin appointed Muhammad Ali’s grandson, Muhyiddin, as the new Bendahara.
But, contrary to Mubin’s hope that it was the end of matter, with the appointment of Muhyiddin and all were then in supposed awe and fear of him, Muhammad Ali’s loyalists felt the need for revenge and convinced Muhyiddin to stand up against Mubin.
Muhyiddin was initially hesitant but eventually agreed to go along with the plan to unseat Mubin.
Muhyiddin’s supporter then began to harass the sultan by “mengarok”, poking spears into palace and homes in the area.
Hence, under the advice of Muhyiddin, Sultan Abdul Hakkul Mubin, unaware of the plot, then moved his palace to Pulau Chermin supposedly to wait until the crisis was over.
But after Mubin left Muhyddin declared himself as the 14th sultan. A battle then ensued between the two competing sultans, thus beginning what is now known as the Brunei Civil War which lasted from 1662 to1673.
After successfully repelling numerous attacks launched by Muhyiddin, Abdul Hakkul Mubin eventually retreated to Kinarut, located in Sabah, where he managed to obtain the assistance of local Bajaus and Dusuns.
Muhyiddin’s forces went all the way to Kinarut many times to attack Mubin but he effectively defended himself. Despite Muhyiddin's efforts, Mubin remained unbeaten even during the ultimate assault on Kinarut.
But after residing and protecting his title in Kinarut for ten years Mubin subsequently, made the strategic decision to return to Pulau Chermin, which proved highly advantageous.
Positioned near the mouth of the Brunei River, the island enabled him to control the supply of food to the mainland.
This caused the people of Brunei to face hardships as they were unable to fish due to the ongoing conflict.
Worried about prolonging the war further, Muhyiddin decided to seek assistance from the Sultan of Sulu.
In exchange for help, Muhyiddin pledged to grant the eastern part of North Borneo (which was then part of the Brunei Empire) as a reward.
And here lies the great controversy about whether there is any legitimacy in the Philippines claim to Sabah.
The popular narrative is that the whole of Sabah (not just the eastern part of it) was awarded to Sulu for helping Muhyiddin in the war.
But historians, including Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, vow that contrary to the legendary courage and ferocity of the Sulu warriors, they stood by watching the battles without giving any assistance to either party.
Eventually Muhyiddin won the war and, prior to his execution on the island, Mubin shot the crown and other royal regalia to the sea.
Others believe these items are still buried somewhere on the island.
Only after the battles were over the Sulu soldiers landed onto Pulau Chermin to haul up whatever loots they could get their hands on.
Thereafter, despite the Sulu Sultanate demand for Sabah to be awarded to his sultanate, Brunei never agreed to it, and never released any official document to legitimise Sulu’s sovereignty of the area.
Years later a Sulu delegation went back to Brunei to demand and official handover of Sabah to Sulu but the sultan rejected the demand and warned the delegates to leave Brunei immediately or be killed.
But the claim persists till today, long after a civil war that was caused tragically by a cockfight way back since the fateful day in Brunei in the 17th century.
Obviously the claim is based on a blatant lie, and now the government of the Philippines in Manila still persists in pursuing the baseless claim for selfish political motive.
- The views expressed here are the views of the writer Raymond Tombung and do not necessarily reflect those of the Daily Express.
- If you have something to share, write to us at: [email protected]
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