Sabah CM and MPs meet over citizenship amendment

 

Sabah chief minister Hajiji Noor (in green) and the eight Sabah MPs at today’s briefing.

PETALING JAYA: 

Sabah chief minister Hajiji Noor chaired a meeting with eight MPs from the state to discuss a proposed constitutional amendment on citizenship which is expected to be debated at the Dewan Rakyat sitting this month.

The chief minister’s office said Hajiji and the MPs were briefed by Mimmi Suriati Mat Khalid, a deputy undersecretary of the home ministry’s registration department and organisation division.

The eight MPs were deputy chief minister Jeffrey Kitingan (Keningau), Armizan Mohd Ali (Papar), Shahelmey Yahya (Putatan), Jonathan Yassin (Ranau), Andi Suryady Bandy (Kalabakan), Matbali Musa (Sipitang), Lo Su Fui (Tawau) and Riduan Rubin (Tenom). Also present was state attorney-general Brenndon Keith Soh.

Details of their discussions were not immediately available.

The pre-council meeting, which is usually held before legislative sittings, was held a week after Kitingan had called for Sabah to be exempted from provisions of the proposed citizenship amendments.

Kitingan had described the proposed amendments as a 

double-edged sword

 and said they would open up doors for illegal immigrants. He called for the amendments to apply only to Peninsular Malaysia for the time being.

The pre-council meeting also came two weeks after 28 organisations and 38 activists urged all MPs from Sabah to vote against the proposed citizenship amendments, on grounds it would exacerbate matters for stateless people in Sabah.

The Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2024, tabled for its first reading in the Dewan Rakyat on March 25, would also grant citizenship to overseas-born children of Malaysian women and lower the age limit to apply for citizenship by registration from 21 to 18. - FMT