Prof Dr Neilson Ilan Mersat
KUCHING (July 6): A couple of academicians have dismissed a recent proposal by Barisan Nasional (BN) deputy chairman Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, who called for a new Malaysia Agreement (MA), as being ‘unrealistic’ and ‘not necessary’.
Prof Dr Neilson Ilan Mersat of Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) said the MA in 1963 was already a solid basis for the formation of Malaysia, and it was not something that ‘anyone could just replace easily’.
“That agreement (MA63) contains promises and obligations of all the parties and it should be honoured and fulfilled.
“It is unrealistic to have a new agreement just because you could not fulfil the old one. The MA63 is doable — if there’s a will to get it realised,” he told The Borneo Post here.
Neilson suspected that the idea behind having the new MA could be ‘to bury the MA63 so that it would stop haunting the federal leaders or the federal government’.
“I don’t think it is that easy for the people of Sarawak and Sabah to forget,” said the professor, whose area of research and academic expertise is Malaysian politics.
Dr Arnold Puyok
Fellow Unimas academician Dr Arnold Puyok also shared the same sentiments, pointing out that a new MA was ‘not necessary’.
“Just implement the MA63 based on the Federal Constitution and in accordance with the legal framework and existing laws.
“There may need to be a restructuring of federal and state jurisdictions, but without the need for a new agreement.
“Just refer to the recommendations in the Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) Report and review the federal and state powers in the Ninth Schedule of the Federal Constitution,” he said.
Arnold, who is attached to the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities in Unimas, also pointed out that the constitutional amendments passed in Parliament that gave greater recognition to the MA63 and restored the original status of Sabah and Sarawak, showed that the federalism system in Malaysia could be restructured based on the spirit of MA63 and current developments in the country.
He also pointed out that the overlapping federal and state jurisdictions could be re-examined and the autonomous power should be granted to the states based on their capacity and capability.
“So why should there be a new deal?” he questioned.
Arnold also said politicians should stop using the MA to garner support.
“Enough is enough with those using politics as a tool just to gain votes and support.
“Politics is about finding practical solutions that are beneficial to the people and the country.”
In his statement on Monday, Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah labelled the proposal to seek a new MA as ‘a crazy idea’.
The Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Sarawak said he was puzzled such proposal coming from Mohamad.
“The MA63 is already a fundamental document, which led to the formation of a nation (Malaysia). Before that, there was no Malaysia.
“MA63 was even incorporated with the Federal Constitution.
“Now you propose a new MA which, to me, is a crazy idea,” he said in a press conference here.
Mohamad had voiced out the proposal at BN Sabah Convention in Kota Kinabalu on July 2.
Yesterday, he was quoted as saying that his call for BN Sabah leadership to put forward a new MA was ‘merely a suggestion’.
from Borneo Post Online https://bit.ly/3OPpoFO
via IFTTT
No comments:
Post a Comment