Kota Kinabalu: Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Vice President David Ong called call on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to do justice for Sabah and Sarawak by restoring their constitutional veto power, which has been diminished since the formation of Malaysia.
“Restoring our veto power in Parliament and the Senate is an important step toward building a fairer and more just Malaysia, where Sabah and Sarawak are treated as equal partners,” he said at the LDP Klias division annual meeting.
Ong said the imbalance in Parliamentary and Senate representation is a clear violation of the principles enshrined in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and must be rectified.
“When Malaysia was formed, Sabah and Sarawak were promised fair representation and protection. However, after Singapore left Malaysia in 1965, the 15 seats Singapore once held were given to Peninsular Malaysia.
This left Sabah and Sarawak with only 25 per cent of the seats in Parliament, taking away our veto power, which is the ability to block constitutional changes that could hurt us.
“To restore this veto power, it is important that Sabah and Sarawak are given at least one-third of the total seats in parliament. This will ensure any changes to the Constitution cannot be made without our agreement.
“I support Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan’s call that the Parliamentary seats that represent Sabah and Sarawak must be held by parties based in East Malaysia to make sure our people’s interests are truly represented,” he said.
Ong said the upcoming re-delineation exercises for Sarawak (2024), Sabah (2025) and Peninsular Malaysia (2026) provide a timely opportunity to correct this injustice.
He said the Federal Government must use this process to allocate at least 35pc of the total seats to East Malaysia, allowing for balanced representation and restoring the voices of the Borneo States.
“Furthermore, representation in the Dewan Negara (Senate) must also reflect this constitutional balance. Sabah and Sarawak should be given at least one-third of the seats in the Senate to prevent laws from being passed without proper input from Sabah and Sarawak.
“When Members of parliament take their oath at office, they promised to show allegiance to Malaysia and to preserve, protect and defend our Constitution.
“Any Member of Parliament who ignores the rights of Sabah and Sarawak or fails to defend it, has betrayed not only the Constitution but also the people of Malaysia, especially to Sabahans and Sarawakians.
“This seat allocation will be a true test of whether the Federal Government and political parties in West Malaysia are serious about restoring the rights of Sabah and Sarawak as promised under MA63.
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