KOTA KINABALU – There is no need for a special state assembly sitting to discuss the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) for now, said Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.
He said not only is the constitutional bill on amending Article 1(2) and Article 160(2) now scheduled to be tabled on December 13, but MA63 issues had also been discussed in prior state assembly sittings.
The proposed constitutional bill amendments will put Sabah and Sarawak on equal footing with the Federation of Malaya, as well as redefine the meaning of the term “federation”.
“Although we don’t have a special sitting to debate MA63, it does not mean we don’t want to have one.
“No one had been stopped from discussing this in the state assembly. But we have already discussed this numerous times from the era of Barisan Nasional, to the Warisan era – I think this is sufficient,” said Hajiji in response to a question by Sabah opposition chief Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal during the ministerial winding-up speech session.
Following calls from opposition assemblymen to hold a special sitting, Shafie said it would go against the spirit of MA63 – which is an international agreement – if the matter is not deliberated and endorsed by the Sabah assembly.
Shafie argued that there are many unseen implications if the constitutional bill is passed in Parliament, such as Sabah’s territorial rights over the continental shelf.
Previously, state opposition leaders called for a consensus between the Sabah and Sarawak assemblies before the constitutional amendments are tabled in Parliament.
Hajiji said he is aware of the underlying matters, noting that administrative changes can be made even if they are not included in the constitutional amendments.
He said there are 17 demands in Sabah’s list in the spirit of MA63 – including the continental shelf issue – and this had been presented to Putrajaya.
“But assuredly, the constitutional amendments would revert to the original status of Sabah and Sarawak, excluding Singapore, before the constitutional amendment done in 1976,” said Hajiji, adding that they were already agreed upon along with Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg.
Shafie then asserted that he wants to put on record at the Sabah assembly that the government has disallowed a special sitting following calls from opposition leaders, causing Local Government and Housing Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun to interject.
Masidi noted a point of order that the ongoing assembly sitting is currently at the ministerial winding-up speech period and should not be diverted into a debate.
Echoing this, Deputy Speaker Datuk Ahmad Abdul Rahman called for the opposition to stop turning the session into a debate. – The Vibes, December 8, 2021
