By: Nurul Fazliana Norman
KOTA KINABALU: Oct 22, 2026 – A new Sabah association for carers will be launched publicly next month, riding on a wave of community interest that has seen more than 200 people book for the event in just one month.
Persatuan Sokongan Penjagaan Sabah (PSPS) will be launched at the VIVA! Carefest Gala Dinner at the ITCC Penampang ballroom on Friday, 6 November 2026, with Yang di-Pertua Negeri Sabah Tun Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Masidi bin Manjun as guest of honour and Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Wilfred Madius Tangau as special guest.
According to PSPS, the bookings came from village chiefs, Native Court members, community leaders, NGOs, think tanks and individual Sabahans — not government departments or academic speakers.
PSPS president Maria Kinson said the response reflected a community that had long known what was coming but had been waiting for a way to act.
“Sabah has known this was coming for thirty years. The data was never the problem — action was. More than 200 people from our villages and communities have already said yes. That is the community saying: this is ours to do,” she said.
The association noted that Malaysia’s first National Policy for the Elderly was written in 1995, and that the Department of Statistics Malaysia projects the country will become an “ageing nation” around 2030, when more than 15% of the population is aged 60 or over. Sabah, with its large rural population, is likely to feel the impact early.
PSPS adviser Greg King said the turnout showed the community was ready to act but needed help to make it happen.
“As we shaped this event, we kept hearing the same thing: people know there is an issue, but they are not sure what it is or what they can do about it. More than 200 people have now committed. If that does not tell us the community is ready and willing to act, nothing will. It just needs help to make it happen — and that is what VIVA! Carefest is for,” he said.
PSPS describes itself as a registered Sabah association for family carers and trained carers alike, working alongside training providers, employers, the community and government. It does not run training itself.
From 7 November, the association said it will pursue three goals: recognising carers — both family members who never call themselves carers and trained carers whose skills deserve respect and fair pay; supporting carers and families by connecting them with each other and with organisations that can help, offering independent advice on training and certification, and giving carers a voice with the community, employers and government; and developing caregiving into a profession with a pathway from carer to senior carer, supervisor and manager.
The gala dinner will feature the official launch of PSPS, an auction of a signed, framed Sabah FC jersey and a signed match ball, and live music from Evergreen Unlimited, Rayner Paulus — known as “Borneo’s Elvis” — and Muazzam Aman. Funds raised will support PSPS and Sabah’s carers.
