Respect Sarawak’s MA63 rights on 17 new seats, says rep

The Sarawak United Peoples’ Party deputy secretary-general said the state assembly’s decision should not be subject to approval or rejection by Putrajaya, as the state legislature is the highest lawmaking body in the state.

“When we make a decision, it is not for the federal government to say yes or no. We have already made a decision. It is for them to table it in Parliament,” the Borneo Post reported him as saying today.

Lo said many Sarawakians were disappointed that the proposed additional seats could not be implemented in time for the next state election and that he shared their disappointment.

He said he also agreed with Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu information chief Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah on the matter, adding that Sarawak was only asking for what had already been agreed under MA63.

“We don’t want anything more. We just want everything that has been mentioned under MA63 and the Intergovernmental Committee Report,” he said.

Lo’s remarks come after deputy prime minister Fadillah Yusof said on Sunday that the proposal to add 17 seats to the Sarawak assembly is unlikely to be tabled in the Dewan Rakyat this year.

He said the matter must go through several processes under the Election Commission, including public display exercises for objections or feedback, which would likely push the tabling to next year.

Karim then criticised what he described as a lack of urgency in securing Parliament’s endorsement of the proposal, noting that it required no changes to parliamentary seats.

He said Parliament had already sat three times since the state assembly unanimously approved the motion last July, but no endorsement had been obtained.

Karim said the timeline for endorsement this year was tight, given that Sarawak is expected to hold its state election by year-end.