Putrajaya stalling on MA63, says opposition rep

See Chee How says the new committee announced by Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar amounted to a delaying tactic.

KUCHING: A Sarawak opposition assemblyman today hit out at the establishment of a new committee to study the way forward for Sabah and Sarawak’s rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963. He said the move was as a “grave disservice” to all Sarawakians and Sabahans.

He said the new Perikatan Nasional federal government had “taken 10 steps backwards” after a special Cabinet committee under the previous Pakatan Harapan government had made five steps forward in advancing the restoration of the special interests of Sarawak and Sabah.

Batu Lintang assemblyman See Chee How said the Sarawak and Sabah governments had reached agreement with the federal government on 17 of 21 subject matters.

“By disbanding the committee and setting up a new one, the new Perikatan Nasional (PN) federal government, of which the state Gabungan Parti Sarawak coalition government is a part, has taken 10 steps backwards.”

He said this after Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar revealed that the Cabinet is setting up a new special committee on the MA63 to look at the Cobbold Commission’s findings on the formation of Malaysia and the inter-governmental committee reports as well as the Malaysia Act more systematically and holistically.

See said the move was part of the federal government’s plot to stall the process of restoring the two states’ special rights and a delaying tactic towards realising the devolution of autonomous powers to Sarawak and Sabah.

He said the new Special Cabinet Committee can call for meetings with the two state governments to agree on the remaining four subject matters and any other issues.

He said Wan Juanidi seemed to hint that the GPS government had backtracked on its resolve to amend Article 1(2) of the Federal Constitution, in which Sabah and Sarawak were listed separately as component members of Malaysia. - FMT