By Lian Cheng
KUCHING, April 18: Santubong MP Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar says there was “no cohort” with other parties except to stop Pakatan Harapan (PH) from bulldozing the Amendment to Federal Constitution Article 1(2) Bill in Parliament on April 9.
He said all Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) attempted to do on that day was to insert the wording of Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) with the aim to bring into the Federal Constitution the spirit of MA63.
“There was no cohort in Parliament. The word is unparliamentary in the context. It was just that the parliamentarians from GPS were supported by PAS and others want the government not to bulldoze anything which is wrong or doubtful based on the majority in the Dewan.
“We filed our proposed amendment to the bill to insert the MA63 in it, to bring in the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963, but it was to be denied. We could not bring in the amendment of the definition of the federation because the procedure is against us,” Wan Junaidi told DayakDaily today.
He said to refer the bill to the Special Select Committee of Parliament would be a win-win situation for both GPS and PH.
Wan Junaidi said those Sarawak MPs who did not support the suggestion of referring the bill to the Special Select Committee were the ones who let down Sarawak.
“If the Special Select Committee was supported, both the government and GPS would have been on the “win-win” situation,” he remarked.
He explained that the Special Select Committee was a parliamentary instrument to deliberate and investigate the wishes of the people and to explain the objective of the draft bill.
“The process of the Special Select Committee could go either way, but it will clarify and verify all the unclear terms and uncertainties in terms of meaning, policy and impact of the eventual law.
“Not supporting the Special Select Committee means denying parliament involvement in law-making and drafting, especially when still many questions are unanswered, including the MA63 and Act of Malaysia 1963 themselves,” said Wan Junaidi in response to a statement by Sarawak PKR chief Baru Bian, who asserted that GPS MPs were the traitors who are in collusion with Umno and PAS.
Baru made the statement following the failure of PH to pass the bill on April 9 after 59 MPs, including those from GPS, Umno and PAS, abstained from voting.
Wan Junaidi reiterated that to go back to the wording of Article 1(2) of the Federal Constitution of 1963 did not mean anything at all.
“Read the Constitution and understand it. All it does is to separate the states in the Federation into two groups, first group from Malaya and second group from the States of Borneo — Sarawak and Sabah.
“Where in the Federal Constitution that says Sarawak and Sabah are ‘Equal Partners with Malaya’ and where in the Constitution is the ‘spirit of Malaysia Agreement 1963’ being mentioned or could be inferred?
“I am pretty sure YB Baru Bian or any of his legal experts could not find it. That is why GPS is fighting for that recognition to be given to the existence of MA63 in the body of the Constitution, not just assigning the MA63 into the explanatory note of the blue bill in Parliament,” said Wan Junaidi. — DayakDaily
