Deputy Premier: Sarawak seeks greater control over strategic education decisions under MA63

Awang Tengah speaking at the 44th PSKPP Festival 2026 for the Limbang and Lawas districts held at Limbang Civic Centre on Oct 1, 2026. Photo: TVS

By DayakDaily Team

LIMBANG, Oct 2: Sarawak is seeking greater authority for its Education Director to make strategic decisions on education as part of efforts to strengthen the State’s role in managing its education needs under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).

Sarawak Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan said the matter was among the key education issues raised at the Malaysia Agreement 1963 Implementation Action Council (MTPMA63) meeting in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, recently.

“At the MTPMA63 meeting held in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, I raised the needs for education development in Sarawak.

“I touched on the need to improve education infrastructure by providing opportunities for our officers to enhance facilities and amenities.

“I also touched on staffing. Imagine Sarawak is such a large State, and we do not want Sarawak to be compared with the smaller states in Peninsular Malaysia,” he said when officiating the 44th Sarawak Education Services Sports and Cultural Association (PSKPP) Festival 2026 for the Limbang and Lawas districts at the Limbang Civic Centre last night (Oct 1).

According to a TVS report, he said Sarawak’s vast geography and unique needs should be taken into account in the recruitment of officers and staffing structure.

Another issue raised was the need for greater flexibility in language use to support Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), and other related fields.

According to Awang Tengah, education is among the matters under MA63 that have gone through the negotiation process, with some already agreed upon, including greater state government involvement in planning education needs.

He said many matters had been resolved at the recent MTPMA63 meeting, while Sarawak’s rights and interests as enshrined in MA63 would continue to be pursued.

Also present were Awang Tengah’s wife Datuk Dayang Morliah Datuk Awang Daud; Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Hasbi Habibollah; Batu Danau assemblyman Dato Paulus Palu Gumbang; Sarawak Education Director Omar Mahli; and Limbang District Education Officer Siti Mariam Salleh. — DayakDaily