Press Statement by Member of Parliament for Bandar Kuching, Kelvin Yii on 30 July 2020

I STRONGLY DISAGREE!

The results and findings of the Cabinet special committee to review the implementation of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) should be revealed to the public as it concerns all of us as Sarawakians and even Sabahans.

Such findings should not be kept secret, giving an impression that it is a only a negotiation between elites without taking into the consultation of the public affected by it. It also reinforce the impression that the current PN government has no intention of implementing what was agreed before.

Under Pakatan Harapan, we formed a Special Cabinet Committee on MA63 comprising the Prime Minister, Cabinet Ministers, Chief Minister, legal experts, academicians, activists and others to discuss and find ways forward to restore rights enshrined under MA63 that was eroded over the years.

This was a high-level committee, with diverse backgrounds, and also high-level representatives from both political divide. Under the discussions, out of 21 issues, 17 has already been resolved under Pakatan Harapan, and the other 4 which concerns oil royalties and ownership will be further discussed by the Prime Minister and the 2 Chief Minister.

That shows progress as the efforts to restore our rights has to go through many different legal amendments and policy changes as such erosion of rights happened over a long period of time under the previous BN administration.

It was PH’s every intention to reveal to public this report and even table it in parliament to be debates as it concerns the rights and even the future of us all under the Federation of Malaysia.

So I urge the PN government to reveal all the findings and negotiations done in a transparent and accountable manner. This involves all of us and we must not repeat what happened in 1974 and 1976 where decisions that affect our 2 territories were made only by the elites without proper consultations even when it had a direct effect on the future of Sabah & Sarawak.

We came together to form Malaysia, and without one another there won’t be any Malaysia. In that spirit of cooperation, there also must be greater transparency and accountability among all partners.

Kelvin Yii Lee Wuen,
Member of Parliament for Bandar Kuching.