East M'sian opposition MPs demand withdrawal of Article 1(2) bill
PARLIAMENT | Putrajaya's move to amend only Article 1(2) of the Federal Constitution in the Dewan Rakyat will be 'meaningless' in empowering the positions of Sabah and Sarawak.
Declaring this, opposition lawmakers from Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), Gabungan Bersatu Sabah (GBS) and BN demanded that the government retracts the motion and refers it to the Parliamentary Select Committee for a thorough study...
PARLIAMENT | Putrajaya's move to amend only Article 1(2) of the Federal Constitution in the Dewan Rakyat will be "meaningless" in empowering the positions of Sabah and Sarawak.
Declaring this, opposition lawmakers from Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), Gabungan Bersatu Sabah (GBS) and BN demanded that the government retract the bill and refer it to the Parliamentary Select Committee for a thorough study.
Sabah's Maximus Ongkili (GBS-Kota Marudu) and Sarawak's Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar (GPS-Santubong) raised the matter on behalf of their coalitions.
"What's inside (this constitutional amendment)? There is nothing," Wan Junaidi said. [Scroll down to view proposed amendments to Article 1(2)]
He and the other opposition MPs are not happy that the constitutional amendment bill was merely suggesting a new clause that specifies all the constituent states of the federation.
Wan Junaidi further said the lawmakers were not given a 24-hour notice on the tabling of the constitutional amendment bill.
"And the steering committee of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 still continues to sit (to discuss ways to restore the status of Sabah and Sarawak), so it is good for us to first see what is this outcome," he said.
Read more: Harapan makes first attempt at amending constitution
Concurring, Bung Moktar Radin (BN-Kinabatangan) said it is better to amend the Federal Constitution in a holistic manner, instead of doing it piecemeal.
Opposition leader Ismail Sabri Yaakob (BN-Bera) said the government should include the move on the constitutional amendment in accordance with the content of MA63.
Dewan Rakyat Speaker Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof ruled that the House was not wrong in moving the motion for the constitutional amendment as the MPs have been informed of it a day before.
De facto Law Minister Liew Vui Keong then tabled the bill to amend the constitution for its first reading in the House.
Liew said the second reading would be held in the current Dewan Rakyat session, which ends on April 11.
The opposition lawmakers then stood up together to show they wanted the motion to amend the constitution to be referred to the Parliamentary Select Committee.
"In this case, you have to put up a written request," Ariff said.
"(We have), the motion will be tabled by Santubong (MP Wan Junaidi)," Bung replied.
In an immediate response, Chan Foong Hin (Harapan-Kota Kinabalu) slammed the opposition's attempt to delay the government's tabling of bill by raising technilicalities issues such as a review of the bill.
“The opposition should not belittle the amendment by saying that it's too brief.
"The bill tabled in Parliament is in line with original MA63 as it reverts Article 1(2) of the Federal Constitution to its original version and also by taking out the 'Malaya' and 'Borneo' wordings," he said.
“There is no need for a special select committee to discuss the matter of reverting Article 1(2) of the Federal Constitution to its original version which is the sole intention of this bill.
"Clearly the opposition MPs are merely playing politics, which is utterly disappointing," he added.
“I would like to remind these opposition Sabah and Sarawak MPs that they are answerable to their electorates, and the rakyat is now, after the 14th General Election, more daring.
"They are no longer hesitant to punish elected representatives who do not uphold their rights, by voting them out during the next general election," he said.
Are you sure you want to delete this comment?
This action cannot be undone.