KUCHING: The Sarawak Patriot Association (SPA) welcomes the move to bring Sarawak and Sabah to the same level as Malaya.
The association, however, has another concern; which is when the states will reclaim the 34.6 per cent representation in Dewan Rakyat.
It noted that in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) Malaya had 104 MPs or 65.4 per cent of representation in Parliament out of a total of 159 MPs at that time.
“This is important so that Dewan Rakyat cannot pass any law that requires a two-thirds majority without the support of Sabah and Sarawak.
“Being an equal partner is a great moment for all of us in Sarawak. However, will the federal government allocate more development funds to Sabah and Sarawak so that our development can be brought to the same level as Malaya,” it said in a statement on Tuesday (Feb 15) on the presentation of the bill to bring more power and authority to reclaim Sarawak’s rights and privileges.
“However, if the change of title cannot empower the current chief minister to have more constitutional powers, we hope the authorities will reconsider the change. Just as importantly, will the Federal Constitution require any amendments to support the changes mooted to our Sarawak Constitution?
“Many are asking if there are additional expenses incurred with the change of title, such as changing of the current chief minister’s department uniforms and office stationery.
“We urge the authorities to continue using all existing materials with the words ‘chief minister’ until they have been fully utilised before replacing them with those that say ‘premier’,” it said.
The association added that this would demonstrate Sarawak’s commitment to sustainability and reduce expenses when the majority of businesses and people were only just starting to recover from two years of the COVID-19 pandemic.
