PUTATAN: Peninsula leaders can no longer look down on or belittle Sabah and Sarawak like before as the two states continue to assert their rights within the federation, said Upko President Datuk Ewon Benedick.
He said both states played a fundamental role in the formation of Malaysia and deserve equal recognition and respect.
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“While they have the right to express their views about Sabah and Sarawak, we have the right to assert our position and identity within the federation.
“We also have the right to say we are part of the Borneo region. Without us, Malaysia would not have been formed,” he said. He was responding to former Law Minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim that Sabah and Sarawak are strengthening their influence at Federal level.
“I dare to say that revenues from Sabah and Sarawak subsidised development in the peninsula through oil and gas revenues since the Petroleum Act was implemented.
Now this matter is being challenged in court by the Sarawak Government, and I agree with that,” he said.
He reiterated that Sabah and Sarawak remain committed to the federation but would not stop asserting their rights, including those enshrined in the Malaysia Agreement 1963.
According to Ewon, the position of Sabah and Sarawak as partners in the federation weakened after Singapore was expelled in 1965 because peninsula did not have two-thirds legislative majority through parliamentary seats earlier.
“When Singapore was part of the Federation, there were constitutional guarantees of protection for territories outside Malaya, including Sabah and Sarawak.
“However, that guarantee was eroded after Singapore left, even though the guarantee was among the reasons Sabah and Sarawak agreed to form Malaysia.
“That is why some see Sabah and Sarawak as one bloc in Borneo.
“We are in our own region separated by the South China Sea and we are demanding the guarantees of protection and rights agreed in MA63,” he said.
He said Sabah has shown firmness in defending its rights, including the 40 per cent state revenue entitlement.
He referred to the action by the Attorney General’s Chambers in filing a stay of execution notice on the High Court decision that ordered negotiations between Federal and the Sabah Government to be finalised within 180 days on the matter.
He said the Sabah Government, through the Sabah Attorney General, had stated that the matter would be challenged in court.
“That means we will stand firm in our own way. Now is the time or era when the authority of leadership in Sabah and Sarawak is rising,” he said.
He said both states are demanding full implementation of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) as a united bloc whether it is called the Borneo region, Borneo bloc or Borneo territories.
Ewon who is also Penampang MP said this at a Chinese New Year celebration organised by Upko Putatan at Tai Pak Kung temple in Putatan.
Zaid suggested that Sabah and Sarawak already have strong political leverage within Malaysia and are now trying to increase it further through the proposed Borneo Bloc.
Ewon said there are various interpretations of “Borneo bloc” and from one perspective it can be considered accurate since Sabah and Sarawak are located on the island of Borneo and are separated from Peninsular Malaysia by the South China Sea.
However, in the context of building the federation, the view of Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Haji Noor is also correct as Sabah and Sarawak remain within a federation and one country, Malaysia, which must continue to cooperate.
“To ensure that the Federation of Malaysia continues to grow as a nation, the Malaysia Agreement must be honoured and the rights of Sabah and Sarawak must be implemented.
“It is therefore natural for leaders and the people of both states to unite in fighting for our rights.”
Ewon said so long as matters agreed upon in MA63 have not been fully implemented, efforts to demand its implementation will continue.
“Currently the Federal Government, Sabah and Sarawak have several official platforms to negotiate the implementation of MA63, including through the MA63 Implementation Action Council and the MA63 Technical Committee, which convene annually.
“Both platforms serve as negotiation channels to ensure that the rights of Sabah and Sarawak are implemented,” he said.
