Published on: Tuesday, January 18, 2011 |
Keningau: The Education Ministry must change the history curriculum in schools and not hide or misinterpret the facts that led to the formation of the Federation of Malaysia, said United Borneo Front (UBF) Chief, Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan.
He said the formation of the Malaysia Federation was the most important history of the country that it should be taught in schools by providing all the true facts.
The entire Federation of Malaysia existence hinges upon the Agreement relating to Malaysia which was signed in London on July 9, 1963 by representatives from Britain, Singapore, Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak, he said.
"History has shown that the way West Malaysia interprets history is different from the way Sabah and Sarawak would interpret the history.
"Unless we had full autonomy and control on our educational curriculum in Sabah and Sarawak, the truth of history can be manipulated and interpreted to suit the West Malaysian bias.
"At present, the most crucial documents leading up to September 16, 1963 have been obliterated from Malaysia's educational curriculum and many generations now have been denied access to the stories of the remarkable lives of forefathers from Sabah and Sarawak, which is a travesty," he said.
Towards this end, he suggested that compulsory reading and texts which should form part of the SPM and STPM courses should include the Malaysia Agreement, the 20 and 18 points from Sabah and Sarawak, the Inter-Governmental Committee Report in 1962, the Cobbold Commission Report of 1962, the Official Report of the Parliamentary Debates on 9th August 1965 with respect to Singapore's exit and Tunku Abdul Rahman's speeches and promises to the Borneo people.
He said that within these texts, the truth and the problems that were foreseen and which have not been resolved could be read.
"These documents are all available online and recorded in books.
It is too late to stop the younger generation from learning about their past and discovering their true identity in Borneo.
"It is with knowledge that the younger generation will form a more united future State Government with a greater and more focused Borneo Agenda as its base.
"Until such time as a more well-informed young group takes over governance in Borneo, the rot will continue," said Dr Jeffrey when speaking at a private Borneo Tea Party hosted by UBF supporter, Dominic Liew.
His comment was prompted when seeing a significant number of the large crowd that attended the tea party here were new or first-time young voters under 30 who showed interest in learning more about the legal documents and historical records.
While touching on the economic issues, Dr Jeffrey was also asked the immediate solutions that can be put in place to empower the business community in Sabah.
He responded that laws and policies which put Sabah and Sarawak at an unfair economic disadvantage could only be reversed if the Borneo parliamentarians reacted in one voice to demand changes to policies such as cabotage and transhipment via Port Klang.
"West Malaysians take up 166 seats in parliament which are fragmented almost 50/50 after the 2008 elections. Sabah and Sarawak hold 56 seats and Labuan one seat.
"If all 56 Sabah and Sarawak MPs amalgamated and had the Borneo Agenda at the forefront of their hearts and their minds, they will be able to have a greater say in parliament with the current volatility in West Malaysian held seats.
"However, if we need to change or amend or reverse unfair policies and laws in future, Sabah and Sarawak must have an increase in the number of MPs currently represented so that we could at least make up more than a 1/3 veto to stop a 2/3 majority from always bearing down upon us without our choice," said Dr Jeffrey.
He said the gross disparity of the price of common foodstuffs and household goods between West Malaysia and Sabah were compared showing significant hikes in container fee differences between direct shipment to Kota Kinabalu and indirect shipment via Port Klang before going to Kota Kinabalu.
The discussion also included a debate on the failure to increase the potential income of smallholders to the same level as those in West Malaysia.
Currently, smallholders in Keningau are selling their products at 50 per cent less than their counterparts in West Malaysia.
In addition, unfair transhipment policies have raised the price of sundry goods to an unacceptable level often beyond the means of the people, allowing businessmen who were present to share their frustration on the obvious injustice of having to sell sundry goods at a higher price in a significantly poorer district.
