SIBU: The numerous debates by both the Pakatan Harapan (PH) federal government and Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) state government after the defeat of a bill to amend Article 1(2) of the Federal Constitution to honour the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) have somehow confused the public.
This was the opinion of State Reform Party Sarawak (STAR) secretary-general Simon Tiong yesterday at a press conference.
On April 9, PH had failed to obtain the two-thirds majority it needed for the amendment after GPS, Barisan Nasional (BN) and Parti Islam Malaysia (PAS) MPs abstained from voting.
This resulted in both sides, PH and GPS, commenting in the aftermath.
While Democratic Action Party (DAP) lawmakers, especially those from Sarawak, commented that the proposed amendment was what appeared in the original MA63, their GPS counterparts argued that the bill was vague as Article 160(2) of the Federal Constitution must also be amended because the definition of “The Federation” must be pursuant to MA63.
“PH had stated their stand and so did GPS. As it was only politicians talking on the subject, the public feel that they (politicians) are cheating them,” opined Tiong.
He said after the state polls in 2016, GPS sent a team to the United Kingdom to get an actual extract of the MA63.
“They said they would reveal their findings, but until now, they have yet to do so.”
“With all these scenarios, STAR as an independent party, will be holding a public discussion on the matter at 7.30pm on April 20 at Paramount Hotel (in Sibu) to clarify to the public the actual contents of MA63,” he said.
“We will share the real contents of MA63 against what was proposed for the amendment.”
The public, including those from NGOs and political parties, are encouraged to give their feedback on the matter at the event.
“From there, we will plan the next course of action. Our approach is different as we are letting the people talk instead of politicians,” Tiong said.
