By Karen Bong
KUCHING, Feb 14: The proposed Bill to rename the position of Chief Minister as “Premier” is to put Sarawak in the right perspective that it is not on par with states like Penang or Melaka.
Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah emphasised that over the years after the formation of Malaysia, the positions of Sarawak and Sabah had been diluted and they were considered just like any other of the smaller states under the Federation of Malaya.
“We do not want to be on par with states like Penang or Melaka, would we? When we formed Malaysia, there were federated and unfederated Malay States. There is only one representing them (Federation of Malaya).
“While there are no significant changes, it (the change in designation) is to fine-tune the situation, including for the Assistant Minister designation, which can cause confusion.
“There were scenarios where assistant ministers, when in foreign countries, were treated as assistants to ministers when they should not be. So, therefore, the proper term for them should be Deputy Minister,” he said when approached by reporters upon leaving the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) Complex today.
When asked for the proper Bahasa Malaysia translation for “Premier”, Abdul Karim said Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka should give the exact word. But he believes that the term “Premier” is good enough to be used in both English and Malay languages.
“Just like premier league, which is called ‘liga premier’ in the Malay language,” he added.
The bill known as the Constitution of the State of Sarawak (Amendment) Bill, 2022, which would seek to amend Article 6(3) of the Sarawak Constitution by substituting the words “Chief Minister” with “Premier”, will be tabled in the DUN Sitting tomorrow.
On whether the name change would indicate more autonomy for Sarawak, Abdul Karim replied: “Yes, this is what we have been waiting for, the reason why we went down to London to study on the IGC (Inter-Governmental Committee) Report, MA63 (Malaysia Agreement 1963), and so on. We know that there have been some rights that have been eroded, and so, these are part and parcel of the little things we are slowly trying to get back.”
On whether this move was to put pressure on Putrajaya, Abdul Karim said there was no pressure as the Sarawak government is just simply fine-tuning what Sarawak should be when formed in Malaysia.
He believes most Sarawakians can understand and would support the amendment. — DayakDaily
