KOTA KINABALU: Parti Warisan Sabah deputy president Darell Leiking today chastised Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi for warning that severe punishment awaited those “promoting regionalism” in Sabah and Sarawak.
Leiking was responding to a statement by Zahid yesterday that anyone who incites the people of Sabah and Sarawak was playing with fire.
Zahid said such action could lead to anarchy and national instability and warned action could be taken against those inciting others.
“The action of some who seditiously incite the people with the slogans ‘Sabah for Sabah’ and ‘Sarawak for Sarawak’ is against the spirit of the Federal Constitution.”
Leiking however said the warning issued by Zahid was dangerous and went against the spirit and letter of why the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) was agreed to by the signing parties.
“I am convinced, like many other Sabahans, that Sabah did not agree to form the federation of Malaysia to only lose its identity by becoming just another state but instead to be equal with all signatories to the MA63 and be assured of its security at the same time.
“What Zahid and other Malayan political leaders keep failing to understand is that the so-called ‘regionalism’ that they refer to is actually the exclusive and inherent special rights and privileges of Sabah and Sarawak.
“Without them, the MA63 would have never been executed,” he said in a statement.
Leiking, who is also Penampang MP, warned that the statement by Zahid could fuel further misunderstanding between Malaya and Sabah/Sarawak and this was clearly forewarned by Sir William Goode before the formation of the federation of Malaysia.
“Sir William, a former colonial head of state of North Borneo, had warned that there should be no ‘taking over by Malaya of the Borneo territories’,” Leiking recalled.
“Sabah will always be appreciative of the contributions made by Malayan teachers, doctors and security personnel who, in some way or another, have assisted Sabah.
“But it is the arrogant and typical ‘colonial’ mental state such as the one shown by Zahid that continues to make Sabahans angry and feel cheated by what has transpired through time since 1963.
“We all thought that we were heading towards healing and correcting the errors of the past but, instead, some are not able to accept the reality of reinstating the rights Sabah, Sarawak and Malaya agreed to.”
Leiking said Zahid’s threat to punish Sabahans showed how much disrespect and ignorance he had for the history of the federation of Malaysia.
“In fact, it is now becoming clearer why Zahid launched Dewan Rakyat speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia’s book ‘Berpisah Tiada’ on the federation.
“We now know that Umno will never be agreeable to allowing the MA63 to be enforced in Sabah because it is akin to the enforcement of ‘regionalism’ to them.”
Pandikar had previously said the rights bestowed to East Malaysia states under MA63 were never eroded, despite such sentiments held by Sabahans and Sarawakians.
Leiking also taunted Sabah BN party leaders, saying it was obvious that they could not fight for the state’s special rights and privileges any more. FMT
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