KUCHING, Dec 5 — Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Junaidi said he doubts whether the recent proposal by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to directly implement the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) without having an agreement from the Cabinet Committee could make any real changes in restoring the rights of the Borneo states.
The former minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law) said while he welcomed Anwar’s effort to restore the rights of Sabah and Sarawak within the Malaysian constitutional order, direct implementation alone would not be able to solve the MA63 issues.
“It is not as simple as everybody says it is,” he told The Borneo Post when contacted on the matter.
“I saw Anwar’s statement the other day, saying that the Cabinet doesn’t need a committee for MA63, and wanted to just implement it. It’s not (like that).
“You know, the basic and most important thing is already there. The MA63 and constitutional document are already recognised by the federal constitution. It was the biggest thing we did,” he added.
On the issue of special grants for Sarawak, Wan Junaidi explained there must be a means in proposing the deal.
He said Putrajaya could not simply give out any figure without taking into account the financial position of the federal government.
“It requires some negotiations because for instance, for the special grants entitlement under Article 112D of the Federal Constitution, the Finance Ministry cannot simply just put the amount there, because it must be agreed on how much the figure is to be given to Sarawak.
“There must be a certain body or committee that is responsible to handle it, not just leave it to the finance ministry. There must be a committee to look into it.
“I don’t think that this proposal is agreeable. For the prime minister to facilitate, that’s for sure,” he stressed.
On the rights of Sabah and Sarawak for the appointment of its judicial commissioners, the former Santubong MP said the prime minister must understand that resolving outstanding MA63 matters would require more than just revisions of papers.
He also said the agreement was needed especially on those non-viable-for-renegotiation issues so that it would not affect any international conventions.
With the amendments of MA63 in the federal constitution last year and the appointment of Sarawak MPs in the Cabinet, Wan Junaidi hoped it would pave more ways for the restoration of Sarawaks’ rights.
“I am sure that the state is pursuing Article 95C of the Federal Constitution, which outlines the King’s power by order to extend legislative or executive powers of states.
“The only thing now is the response from the federal (government) but with Anwar there, I’m very positive this could be done,” he added. — Borneo Post Online
