by Jimmy Adit
SARAWAK FOCUS: Chief Minister Adenan Satem wants a mandate specifically for him from the people, not the one he now has, which he inherits.
He knows a mandate meant for him will be so much different from the current one, which was handed down to him by his predecessor Abdul Taib Mahmud.
“Give me a mandate as the present mandate is (given me) by Pehin Sri (Taib). I want my own mandate. I walk the talk and you can try me on this one.
“You must help me. You must back me up. With a strong mandate, they will know that Sarawak is behind me,” the state’s No. 1 politician was quoted as saying just days before Gawai Dayak which falls on June 1.
By “they” he must mean Putrajaya because from day one of his chief ministership Adenan has been trying to tell the federal leaders to grow up to the fact that Sarawak is a unique state with its own peculiarities that only Sarawakians understand.
Sarawakians clamouring for a ‘Sarawak for Sarawakians’ (S4S) should, therefore seriously consider giving Adenan the mandate he has been asking for.
S4S demands for a revisit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), which brought together Sabah, then known as North Borneo, and the independent states of Sarawak and Singapore with the Federated Malay state of Malaya to form a new union, the Federation of Malaysia on September 16, 1963.
A list of 20 points were agreed upon by the founding fathers of Malaysia to safeguard the interests, rights and autonomy of the people of North Borneo while for Sarawak, 18 points.
The contention today is that MA63 has not been honoured and Sarawakians, like their Sabahan counterparts, feel they have been unfairly treated by the federal government.
In Sabah, former Barisan Nasional (BN) assemblyman James Ligunjang said the frustration and anger is cutting across the board.
He said if Putrajaya could turn a deaf ear to charges by opposition politicians like Dr Jeffrey Kitingan, the warnings by BN politicians like Kalabakan MP Abdul Ghapur Salleh on Putrajaya's treatment of Sabah must be particularly worrying for the ruling coalition.
In Parliament on March 16, Ghapur warned Putrajaya to take care of Sabahans and that if they don't, “we (BN) will lose”.
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Sabah’s “sticky points” according to its former chief minister Yong Teck Lee include the demand for an increase in the oil and gas royalty and addressing the influx of illegal immigrants, which has change the state's racial demography.
These illegals, particularly Muslim Filipinos, Indians, Pakistanis and Indonesians, who were issued identification cards under the so-called Project IC, pose serious security threat.
Yong said Putrajaya has for years avoided taking a look at the Malaysia Agreement as they sought to dominate Sabah.
Ligunjang said Sabahans’ anger is boiling over by Umno's presence in Sabah which “violates the Malaysia Agreement as Malaya should not be interfering in the politics of Sabah”.
“They cannot be here as they do not comply with the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement.
“Also, what happened to the agreement to return 40% of the income generated by Sabah back to the state?
“Sabah and Sarawak are endowed with rich natural resources and today, after 52 years of plundering, we have both been reduced to beggars, begging to Putrajaya for handouts,” Ligunjang was reported as saying.
According to reports, Yong was mulling taking the Borneonisation issue either to the United Nations or initiating legal action in the United Kingdom on the Malaysia Agreement 1963 if all legal remedies within the country are exhausted.
“It’s either we petition the UN to get the signatories to MA63 to honour the promises made therein or we initiate legal action against the United Kingdom government,” said Yong, who is also president of the Sabah Progressive Party (Sapp).
MA63 was signed in London on July 9 1963 and the UK was a party to the agreement.
Yong was commenting on the decision of the Federal Court to postpone indefinitely the Borneonisation case filed by two former Sabah public servants against the federal and Sabah governments.
The indefinite postponement means that Sabahans cannot yet initiate legal action in the United Kingdom or petition the UN because legal remedies in Malaysia have not been exhausted.
Former Sabah state secretary Simon Sipaun feels the unhappiness in Borneo with Malaysia will end if the federal Constitution is brought in line with MA63.
According to him, the problem could be the different perceptions Malaya and Borneo have on Malaysia.
“We thought we were going to form a new nation. It’s easy to get confused because we inherited Malaya’s flag, their national anthem and their constitution, among others.
“They (Malayans) claim that we joined them.”
Sipaun insisted that a new nation should have a new constitution, a new national anthem and a new flag, “not merely ‘transplant’ Malaya’s and call it Malaysia”.
“There must be Borneonisation as pledged in 1963. We can’t have Malayans replacing the British,” Sipaun said.
This I think is the essence of the growing call for a “Sarawak for Sarawakians”.
If Sabah’s conundrum is what S4S is all about, Sarawakians should be able to see very clearly what Adenan’s struggle is all about.
Even though the language he uses may be different, Adenan’s ultimate objective seems to be towards realising today’s popular call for a “Sarawak for Sarawakians”.
The state’s sovereignty vis-à-vis its immigration powers, illegal immigrants, Malayan political hegemony via Umno, Sarawakians in the civil service, more federal funds, better education infrastructure and facilities, and of course the 20% oil and gas royalty are among issues that Adenan wants satisfactorily resolved by Putrajaya.
Adenan knows he will not be able to do all this if Sarawakians don’t give him their undivided support. But he will be able to do a lot if they give him the mandate he needs.
Compared to Sabahans, Sarawakians are a luckier lot because they have their chief minister leading the push for recognition by the federal government.
It will be much, much different if it is a stronger mandate because a stronger mandate can only mean Adenan will be operating from a broader power base.
On the state’s push for the 20% oil and gas royalties, Adenan said: “We will not stop until we get it.”
On religious freedom in the state, he said: “I may be the most powerful man in Sarawak right now but I will never tell you how to practise your religion –
Christians can use the word ‘Allah’ anytime and there is freedom to practise your religion anywhere in Sarawak.”
No other leaders in Malaysia will dare say that. Adenan dares.
Sarawakians should, therefore, be ready to give Adenan the mandate, and the mandate should be one that is not only convincing but a true reflection of what Sarawakians want for Sarawak.
TWICE he praised and sang the goodness of M. Taib ex CM of Sarawak.
M. Taib literally pillaged and robbed the state blind and the evils done to the indigenous people is unpardonable and yet the J. Adit seems oblivious of these facts.
Is he getting some goodies from Taib.
Now he is asking Sarawakians to support Adenan who no doubt did some good in the beginning, but the ugly side is already showing in that he approved the Baram Dam construction.
WHY in the wold do Sarawak need so many dams - at one time before the Bakun Dam was even constructed plans were made to sell electricity to mainland Malaya. What happened???
How many big industries are there in the state.
No but Taib and his gang just want to build so that they make money through inflated costs at state expense! Now Adenen is fulfilling his wish and maybe also benefitting in return!
Get real J. Adit and get a LIFE!!!
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