Warisan did the heavy lifting on MA63, says former aide

 

The late Liew Vui Keong of Warisan, while law minister, was instrumental in resolving MA63 issues, says a former aide.

PETALING JAYA: A former political aide has dismissed a contention that Warisan is attempting to form an alliance with Sarawak’s ruling coalition merely to shore up support in its home base.

Ben Mansul said the idea of a Borneo Bloc comprising GPS of Sarawak and Warisan of Sabah was in the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) to defend Sabah and Sarawak from exploitation by political parties of West Malaysia.

He said it was the late Liew Vui Keong of Warisan, as law minister in the Pakatan Harapan government, who had been instrumental in helping to resolve 17 issues relating to states’ rights under MA63.

The remaining four issues could not be resolved because the Sheraton Move had caused the downfall of the PH government.

The Sarawak state government and the ruling coalition GPS, then in the federal opposition, had no qualms with Warisan’s efforts on MA63, he said.

However, the Sarawak state government had rejected a committee on devolution of power set up by Barisan Nasional, co-chaired by Anifah Aman and Nancy Shukri, as being deemed powerless.

Mansul, who describes himself as secretary to Warisan MPs, said the political will required for implementation of MA63 issues was non-existent in Sabah BN and the Sabah coalition of GRS.

Through the Borneo Bloc, GPS and Warisan could help each other to defeat any exploitative and manipulative agenda against Sabah and Sarawak, he said.

The possibility of no party having a majority in the new Parliament made the Borneo Block essential to protect the rights of Sabahans and Sarawakians effectively, he said.

Mansul was responding to an FMT article in which a political analyst said Warisan’s main aim in seeking an alliance with GPS was to bolster support for itself in its home base of Sabah. - FMT