Chan Foong Hin

Summary

Datuk Chan Foong Hin (born 25 December 1978) is the DAP Member of Parliament for Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, having held the seat since GE14 in May 2018, and has served successive deputy ministerial roles in the Anwar Ibrahim Unity Government across Agriculture and Food Security and Plantation and Commodities portfolios. Before entering federal politics, he was state assemblyman for Sri Tanjong (2013–2018) and has been a consistent advocate for Sabah's rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963. He also holds party positions as DAP National Policy Director and Sabah DAP Deputy Chairman as of 2024–2025.

Biography

Datuk Chan Foong Hin (born 25 December 1978) is a Malaysian politician and chemical engineer who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Kota Kinabalu since May 2018 [1]. He is a member of the Democratic Action Party (DAP), a component party of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition [1]. Prior to his parliamentary role, he served as a member of the Sabah State Legislative Assembly for Sri Tanjong from May 2013 to May 2018, where he was also the Sabah DAP secretary [2]. In GE14 (2018), Chan swapped seats with the then-Kota Kinabalu MP Jimmy Wong and won the federal seat with a majority of 24,086 votes [3]. He successfully defended Kota Kinabalu in GE15 (2022), winning the five-cornered contest [4]. Following PH's return to government in December 2022, Chan was appointed Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Security under Minister Mohamad Sabu [5]. In the December 2023 cabinet reshuffle, he was moved to Deputy Minister of Plantation and Commodities [6]. Following a further reshuffle in December 2025, he was reappointed as Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Security [3]. In October 2024, he became Sabah DAP Deputy Chairman, and in March 2025 he was named DAP National Policy Director [1]. In October 2023, Chan accepted the Panglima Gemilang Darjah Kinabalu (PGDK) award carrying the 'Datuk' title from the Sabah Governor; DAP's central executive committee formally reprimanded him for this [7]. In the 17th Sabah State Election (November 2025), Chan contested the Tanjung Aru seat but was defeated [8].

Known for

Chan Foong Hin is known as the DAP's primary parliamentary voice for Sabah rights and federal development allocations for Kota Kinabalu, having held the seat since 2018. He has served in two distinct deputy ministerial portfolios — Agriculture and Food Security, and Plantation and Commodities — under Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's Unity Government. He is also noted for publicly advocating for the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and Sabah's constitutionally protected rights, including freedom of religion [4].

Political positions

Chan Foong Hin has consistently advocated for the restoration of Sabah and Sarawak's rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), calling on fellow MPs to support constitutional amendments toward this end [9]. On religious freedom, he has argued that freedom of religion is a foundational pillar of the Malaysian federation as established by MA63, and has opposed legislative moves that he considers incompatible with Sabah's founding terms [4]. He has also advocated for Sabah to receive greater federal development allocations, highlighting the doubling of Sabah's special grant to RM600 million and infrastructure investments in the 2026 Budget [4]. On education policy, he previously called for schools to be given greater autonomy in deciding between physical and online classes during the COVID-19 pandemic, citing connectivity gaps in Sabah [10]. He has described the DAP's participation in the Unity Government alongside UMNO as a sign of political maturity and cross-party cooperation [4]. On Sabah's 'premier' title debate, Chan stated that constitutional changes at the state level carry no weight without a corresponding amendment to the Federal Constitution, and urged a focus on substantive decentralisation of powers first [3].

Before politics

1. 1978Chan Foong Hin born on 25 December 1978. By profession, he is a chemical engineer.⛓

Political career

1. May 2013Elected as Sabah State Legislative Assembly member for Sri Tanjong in GE13. Also served as Sabah DAP secretary.⛓
2. April 2018Nominated as DAP candidate for Kota Kinabalu parliamentary seat in GE14, swapping seats with then-incumbent Jimmy Wong.⛓
3. May 2018Won Kota Kinabalu parliamentary seat in GE14 with a majority of 24,086 votes, becoming MP for Kota Kinabalu.⛓
4. November 2022Re-elected as MP for Kota Kinabalu in GE15, winning a five-cornered contest.⛓
5. December 2022Appointed Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Security under Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's Unity Government.⛓
6. October 2023Conferred the Panglima Gemilang Darjah Kinabalu (PGDK) award carrying the 'Datuk' title by the Yang di-Pertua Negeri Sabah; subsequently reprimanded by DAP's central executive committee for breaching party policy on accepting state honours.⛓
7. December 2023Moved to Deputy Minister of Plantation and Commodities following a cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.⛓
8. October 2024Elected as Sabah DAP Deputy Chairman.⛓
9. March 2025Appointed DAP National Policy Director.⛓
10. November 2025Contested the Tanjung Aru seat in the 17th Sabah State Election but was defeated in a nine-cornered contest.⛓
11. December 2025Reappointed as Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Security under Minister Mohamad Sabu following the December 2025 cabinet reshuffle.⛓

Election history

• 2025Tanjung Aru (Sabah State N.22)Lost⛓
• 2022Kota Kinabalu (P172)Won⛓
• 2018Kota Kinabalu (P172)Won⛓
• 2013Sri Tanjong (Sabah State)Won⛓

Perspectives on key issues

• GovernmentChan has served the Unity Government as deputy minister across two portfolios (Agriculture and Food Security; Plantation and Commodities) and has been a vocal advocate for federal development allocations for Sabah, including the doubling of Sabah's special grant to RM600 million and large infrastructure investments in the 2026 Budget.⛓
• OppositionChan lost the Tanjung Aru state seat in the November 2025 Sabah State Election to Warisan's candidate in a nine-cornered contest, reflecting DAP's defeat across all eight Sabah state seats it contested in that election.⛓
• VerifiedFactsDAP's central executive committee formally reprimanded Chan Foong Hin and Sabah DAP colleague Phoong Jin Zhe in October 2023 for accepting the 'Datuk' title from the Sabah Governor, which was in violation of DAP party policy prohibiting serving elected representatives from accepting state honours. Chan and Phoong subsequently issued a public apology.⛓