KUCHING, Sept 17: To uphold the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), the total federal allocation should be divided equally between the three regions of Malaya, Sarawak and Sabah.
This is the view of Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) women chief Dato Sri Doris Brodie when responding to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s Malaysia Day celebration speech in Sabah yesterday (Sept 16).
“Regarding the fresh federal allocation amounting to RM4.47 billion for Sarawak, announced by the prime minister, that will be channelled as development allocations under the first rolling plan of the 12th Malaysia Plan, although we are thankful but still wonder if our vast geographical landscape and the lack of infrastructure development are fairly put into consideration when discussing the allocations.
“Sarawak and Sabah comprise 60 per cent of the land area of this country while 40 per cent of the land area is in West Malaysia. To uphold the spirit of the MA63, the total federal allocation should be divided equally between the three regions i.e Malaya, Sarawak and Sabah,” said Doris in a statement today.
She further reminded the federal government that since the collapse of Pakatan Harapan (PH) government in 2020, Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS)-led government had contributed to the stabilisation of the national politics from deteriorating further into turmoil twice during the administration of former Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and the current prime minister.
Trying to view the matter positively, Doris said the just announced allocation, was “a good start” before stating that it has been 58 years since Malaysia was formed but sadly for Sarawak, although possibly the biggest contributor to Malaysia’s coffer via her oil and gas, still remains the most lacking in infrastructure development.
“The assurance by the prime minister to pay close attention to Sarawak and Sabah dawns a new hope for us Sarawakians. We look forward to the fulfillment of the promises and trust that the MA63 Special Council which is chaired by the prime minister has the political will to right the wrongs in tandem with the spirit of the MA63 in due time. It’s long overdue.
“We’re anxious for this matter to be addressed and resolved speedily. We have high hope that Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri will put this matter close to his heart and amongst his most important agendas,” said Doris. — DayakDaily
