MIRI: Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP) is shocked and “fully understands and in full agreement” with the Minister of Welfare, Community Well Being, Women, Family and Childhood Development Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah’s reaction over the decision to discontinue the Sarawak Special Committee on Citizenship.
“It came as a shock to us and the majority of the people of Sarawak because from what we can gather, the committee has been successful and has been doing very well to help resolve problems of children with citizenship issues as well as to facilitate and expedite applications, since its formation in the year 2016, ” said SUPP secretary-general Datuk Sebastian Ting in a statement late yesterday.
Ting, who is also Piasau assemblyman, said SUPP sincerely hopes this is not another political decision even though the perception on the ground appears otherwise.
The committee was set up in October 2016, with approval from the then Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
On July 26, Fatimah Abdullah said she received a letter dated July 22 from the Home Ministry’s secretary-general Datuk Seri Alwi Ibrahim on the discontinuation of the committee.
“The question here is, does the Home Minister have knowledge of this letter?” Ting asked.
Ting said he doubted that the decision was made by of Home Affairs Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, “who in my humble opinion, has always been kind, considerate and has a soft spot for Sarawak all these years, even when he was in BN”. He said from his years serving as a political secretary to former minister Tan Sri Peter Chin Fah Kui he found Muhyiddin very accommodating towards Sarawak.
