By DayakDaily Team
HANG TUAH JAYA, Aug 15: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said that despite the current administration’s shortcomings, his government had never treated the demands of Sarawak and Sabah as secondary.
Speaking at the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) congress held here in Melaka today, he said that his administration was also the first to elevate the States’ demands, including those under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), as a national agenda.
Anwar, who is PKR president, said the party had never regarded MA63 as an issue concerning only Sarawak and Sabah.
“It is a national agenda. For the country to succeed, Peninsular Malaysia must work with Sabah and Sarawak. All three must progress together,” he said in a Free Malaysia Today news report.
Anwar said it was not important whether such an approach would translate into more votes for the party, noting that voters in Peninsular Malaysia generally did not consider such matters when casting their ballots.
“But it is the right thing (to do). We need to be just, and development must benefit every single person in this country,” he said.
Anwar said he often discussed matters related to Sarawak-owned PETROS and national oil company PETRONAS with Sarawak Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg Tun Openg.
“Our policy must reflect the willingness of the federal government and PETRONAS to ensure a strong and comfortable working relationship between PETRONAS and PETROS so that we can move forward.”
At the same time, Anwar acknowledged there was still room for improvement in implementing MA63 demands. — DayakDaily
