Arunarsin Taib

Summary

Arunarnsin Taib (born 19 January 1966) is the WARISAN Member of the Sabah State Legislative Assembly for Gum-Gum (N50), a seat he has held since first winning it in May 2018. He briefly served as State Assistant Minister of Youth and Sports under the WARISAN government before becoming an opposition assemblyman from September 2020 onwards, a role he retained after winning the November 2025 Sabah state election. In the assembly, he has focused on rural infrastructure, public housing access, wildlife damage to smallholder agriculture, and accountability in water-supply contracting.

Biography

Arunarnsin Taib (born 19 January 1966) is a Malaysian politician and member of Parti Warisan Sabah (WARISAN) who has served as Member of the Sabah State Legislative Assembly (MLA) for the Gum-Gum constituency (N50) since May 2018 [1]. Gum-Gum falls under the Libaran parliamentary constituency on Sabah's east coast, in the Sandakan division [2]. He first contested Gum-Gum in the 2018 Sabah state election — held concurrently with the 14th Malaysian General Election — and won with 37.8% of the vote and a majority of 598 [3]. Following WARISAN's victory in that election, he was appointed State Assistant Minister of Youth and Sports of Sabah, serving under Chief Minister Shafie Apdal until the collapse of the WARISAN administration in September 2020 [1]. He retained the seat in the September 2020 snap election with 3,140 votes and a majority of 269 in a six-cornered fight, sitting thereafter as an opposition assemblyman under the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) state government [3]. During the 2020–2025 assembly term, Malay Mail reported that Arunarnsin claimed to have been approached multiple times by opposition agents seeking to persuade him to defect from WARISAN, which he publicly rejected [4]. He contested and won Gum-Gum again in the 17th Sabah state election on 29 November 2025, securing 2,997 votes with a majority of 1,103, returning him to the assembly as a WARISAN opposition member under the renewed GRS-led state government [5].

Known for

Arunarnsin Taib is known as the WARISAN assemblyman for Gum-Gum who has held the seat across three consecutive state elections since 2018, transitioning from a brief ministerial role under the WARISAN government to a sustained opposition presence. He has used his position in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly to raise constituent issues including rural infrastructure deficits, wildlife nuisance to smallholders, and public housing integrity. He has also publicly challenged the GRS-led state government's record on water supply management, citing the Auditor-General's findings on water treatment plant contracts [2].

Political positions

Based on his recorded assembly speeches and public statements, Arunarnsin Taib has consistently raised issues affecting rural and semi-urban constituents in the Sandakan region. On infrastructure, he has highlighted severe road degradation in Gum-Gum villages, stating that residents were compelled to purchase their own cement to repair roads [2][6]. On housing, he raised concerns in the Sabah State Legislative Assembly about ineligible occupants subletting People's Housing Project (PPR) units, arguing this deprived qualifying low-income applicants of affordable housing [2][7]. On water governance, he cited the 2019 Auditor-General's report to contest claims by UMNO's Sabah information chief, pointing to alleged conflicts of interest and non-transparent contracting in Sabah's water treatment sector [2][8]. On cost of living, he joined fellow Warisan assemblymen from the Sandakan area in opposing proposed assessment rate hikes by the Sandakan Municipal Council, arguing that increases should only follow service improvements [2][9]. On local agriculture and wildlife management, he raised in the assembly the matter of monkeys raiding smallholder farms and crocodile attacks in his constituency, pressing for long-term state solutions [2][6].

Political career

1. 9 May 2018Contested and won the Gum-Gum state seat (N50) for WARISAN in the 2018 Sabah state election, receiving 4,710 votes (37.8% share) and a majority of 598.⛓
2. May 2018Appointed State Assistant Minister of Youth and Sports of Sabah in the WARISAN government under Chief Minister Shafie Apdal.⛓
3. July 2020Publicly stated he had been approached multiple times by agents of the opposition seeking his defection from WARISAN ahead of the collapse of the state government, which he rejected.⛓
4. September 2020Lost his assistant ministerial post when the WARISAN administration collapsed.⛓
5. 26 September 2020Re-elected in the 2020 Sabah snap state election, winning Gum-Gum with 3,140 votes (25.2% share) and a majority of 269 in a six-cornered fight. Became an opposition MLA under the GRS-led state government.⛓
6. 29 November 2025Won the Gum-Gum seat for a third consecutive term in the 17th Sabah state election with 2,997 votes and a majority of 1,103 in a nine-cornered contest, returning as a WARISAN opposition member.⛓

Election history

• 2025Gum-Gum (N50)Won26.2%⛓
• 2020Gum-Gum (N50)Won25.2%⛓
• 2018Gum-Gum (N50)Won37.8%⛓

Perspectives on key issues

• GovernmentThe Sabah government, through its Minister, agreed to investigate Arunarnsin's concerns about ineligible PPR occupants subletting units, with the ministry noting it was already monitoring such cases through local authorities.⛓
• OppositionAs a WARISAN opposition assemblyman, Arunarnsin has consistently challenged the GRS-led state government's record on infrastructure delivery, water-supply governance, and cost of living, using assembly question time to press for accountability.⛓
• AffectedTamu (market) traders in Gum-Gum noted that a market redevelopment plan initiated under Arunarnsin's 2018–2020 ministerial tenure was halted after the government change, leaving the market incomplete and affecting trader livelihoods.⛓
• VerifiedFactsArunarnsin won Gum-Gum in 2018 (majority 598), 2020 (majority 269), and 2025 (majority 1,103), making him the only MLA to have held the seat for three consecutive terms under WARISAN. In 2025, WARISAN won 25 of 73 seats and sits in opposition to the GRS-led government.⛓