IT would not be right to ignore the Malaysia Agreement (MA63) in favour of a new deal getting drafted, especially where the interests of Sabah and Sarawak are concerned, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Sabah and Sarawak Affairs) Datuk Seri Maximus Ongkili.
This is because MA63 is very important to Sabah and Sarawak, he said, as without the document there would be no reference and basis for discussing issues that can bring benefits to these two states.
Ongkili said all quarters should understand that the MA63 and Malaysia Act had also been tabled at the levels of Parliament and the state legislative assemblies of Sabah and Sarawak.
“For sure we need to make a new agreement with Putrajaya, but it must be based on MA63; supposing you are dissatisfied with the Federal Constitution, what reference documents can be used to debate it?” he said in a statement yesterday.
Ongkili was commenting on a statement by former Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia on Friday urging Sabah and Sarawak leaders to stop raising MA63 and instead to draw up a new agreement with Putrajaya which will benefit the two states.
The Parti Bersatu Sabah president said that at the federal level there needs to be an agreement that serves as a basic point of reference, and without MA63 there would be no reference point.
“Malaysia still has right-thinking leaders not only at the federal government level but also in Sabah and Sarawak who are committed to preserving, strengthening and renewing the Federation of Malaysia, and it will expand the ideology of Sabah Maju Jaya and Sarawak as partners of the Federation,” Ongkili remarked. – Sept 19, 2021.
