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Banggi’s riches, its people’s struggles

Strategically positioned in the South China Sea, Malaysia's largest island is attracting international interest even as its residents continue to grapple with water shortages, blackouts, and poor roads.

The Star MalaysiaPhilip Golingai2026-10-24 23:00查看原文 ↗

Not a computer chip in sight: A ‘petrol station’ on Banggi Island, where workers use funnels to fuel up vehicles while keeping track of the number of litres using stones as tallies. — PHILIP GOLINGAI/The Star

IMAGINE living on Malaysia’s largest island, which is roughly the size of Singapore, with not a single petrol station in sight. Welcome to Banggi Island, Sabah, where filling up your vehicle looks nothing like it does in Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur, or Kota Baru.

On this island located off the northern tip of Sabah, fuelling a pickup truck is still done the old way, reminiscent of the roadside operations seen across rural Peninsular Malaysia back in the 1970s and 1980s before petrol stations took over.

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pgolingai@thestar.com.my

Thank you for your report!

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