Sept 16 was Malaysia Day; the first time in 47 years that the formation of Malaysia has been officially commemorated as a national holiday. I thought this was a promising sign of a change in sentiment – that the Malaysians of the Peninsular would look eastwards and embrace Sabah and Sarawak and show solidarity, concern and understanding towards their much ignored brethren across the South China Sea.

I attended a function on the night of the 16 ^th held in conjunction with Malaysia Day, quite excited by the prospect as a Sarawakian to join in the celebrations in Kuala Lumpur, but more importantly, to celebrate my nation for what it was envisaged to be – one nation.

I sat at the dinner table and listened as one of the speakers for the night expounded on the18 and 20 point agreement for Sarawak and Sabah respectively, and spoke of their importance in the context of Malaysia, and highlighted how a great deal of what was promised to these two entities in joining Malaysia has been forgotten and ignored by the central government.

Yet when the question-and-answer session began, I was to be sorely disappointed. Many questions were raised, all of which were not unlike the sort one would get at any vaguely political forum held in Kuala Lumpur – do you think voters in the next election will vote based on racial lines or based on ideology? What do you think of the shift of the national education system from English to Malay? Is Umno still relevant?

I acknowledge that in the spirit of asking questions, these are all valid points. But in the spirit of celebrating Malaysia Day, what was there to be found?

Not one question was asked regarding East Malaysia – what could be done to improve relations between East and West Malaysia? Should the East be given bigger representation in Parliament? Why has there been no change in the mere 5% oil royalty that Sabah and Sarawak receive, in spite of numerous requests to raise the percentage?

Why has the government kept mum over the rape cases of Penan women in the interior of Sarawak, who have been told to drop their charges against the timber companies so that they will have access to transport?

The complete lack of discussion regarding East Malaysia is reflective of the mentality of some West Malaysians, and I fear that this may possibly be the prevailing view, although I sincerely hope this is not the case. I left the dinner, completely disheartened by the display.

A token sape recital and Melanau dance mean nothing when you know nothing of the other two entities that make up your nation. The glaring apathy, ignorance and lack of interest in Sabah and Sarawak needs to end, and it needs to end now.

How can one expect Malaysia to flourish as a nation and build ties with other countries, when Malaysians themselves don’t realize what constitutes their own backyard?

It is not too late to make amends and to rebuild the marriage that is Malaysia. But these efforts must not be half-hearted, and must not be for selfish reasons. Do not forget that the grass in the Peninsular is greener, and that this has been at the expense of Sabah and Sarawak.