It is governance, not Peninsula Malaysia!

Sabah and Sarawak now have a convenient target to blame - the federal government based in Putrajaya.

By T K Chua

I read two news reports , one from Chong Chieng Jen, the MP for Kuching, Sarawak and the other from Abdul Ghapur Salleh, the MP for Kalabakan, Sabah. Both have lamented the lack of fair treatment to the two states by the federal government.

MP Chong talked about “Peninsula Malaysia-centric” policies while MP Ghapur talked about “suitcase politicians” going to Sabah making threats.

What they have asserted are perhaps true. The unequal share of oil revenue, the lack of infrastructure development in the two states, the monopolisation of mega contracts by companies from Peninsula, the general poverty in the two states and the lack of power to decide on budgetary allocations are genuine complaints requiring attention from all parties.

Intuitively, the two MPs have implied that things could be different if the two states are allowed greater autonomy and self-determination. To me this is a big assumption which we must tread cautiously.

I have seen many countries attaining independence or regions given autonomy but they have failed miserably to make progress for their people. In many of these places, it is the “adventurous story” of “one tyrant replacing another”.

Sabah and Sarawak now have the convenient target to blame – the federal government based in Putrajaya. So they blame everything on Peninsula Malaysia as the big brother “colonising” them.

But make no mistake; the issue we are confronted with today is governance, not whether it is Peninsula-, Sabah- or Sarawak-centric. The lack of governmental effectiveness and misallocation of resources are felt all over the country, not just Sabah and Sarawak.

Why don’t we take a look at federal allocations and projects in states like Kelantan and Penang? Why don’t you ask Peninsula Malaysians in general whether or not they are happy with government resource allocations and spending?

Oil producing states always like to harp on sharing of oil revenue. But what about non-oil producing states which contributed the bulk of the non-oil revenue to the federal coffer? You should ask the people of Penang, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur how much they get in return vis-à-vis the income and indirect taxes they have paid to the federal coffer.

Of course there are people in Peninsula Malaysia who are very happy with the way it is now. So also there are many people in Sabah and Sarawak who are at bliss with the present scheme of things.

Have we ever asked why politicians in power in Sabah and Sarawak have never complained about marginalisation by Peninsula Malaysia? Only politicians out of power are making noise. To me this is where the danger lies. Would they have behaved the same way once they are in power?

Hence, it is really not the issue of Peninsula Malaysia or the state concerned. It is governance and how we should put in place and strengthen democratic institutions which will guarantee the sustainability of good governance.

Put simply, everybody is capable of abusing power and everybody is capable of marginalising others, both those from Peninsula Malaysia as well as those from within your own states.

T K Chua is an FMT reader