Guan Eng: 35pct for East M'sia plan can be legislated now

There's nothing stopping Putrajaya from amending existing laws now to reserve 35 percent of parliamentary seats for Sabah and Sarawak, said DAP chairperson Lim Guan Eng.

In a statement today, Lim said the Federal Constitution can be amended soon but only be enforced later.

"This proposal is neither controversial nor contentious since no political party had so far dared to oppose the increase in the number of parliamentary seats in Sabah and Sarawak from the current 25 percent to 35 percent," said Lim.

Lim was commenting on Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law) Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar's explanation that the proposal to increase Sabah and Sarawak's share of parliamentary seats could not be implemented before the next general election.

Wan Junaidi said the matter was still a proposal at this stage. The proposal was drawn by the Special Council on Malaysia Agreement 1963, chaired by Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

The council had proposed that 35 percent of parliamentary seats be allocated to Sabah and Sarawak to reflect a distribution similar to 1963 when Malaysia was formed.

Wan Junaidi explained that various consultation processes will have to take place before the cabinet can decide on the next course of action.

Sarawak and Sabah are due to have their electoral boundaries redrawn in 2023 and 2025 respectively.

For Peninsular Malaysia, the exercise can only take place in 2026.

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