KUCHING, Jan 20: Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) is challenging Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to repeal the Petroleum Development Act 1974 (PDA74), Territorial Sea Act 2012 (STA2012) and the Continental Shelf Act 1966 (CSA66) and to return all oil and gas (O&G) resources to Sabah and Sarawak if Anwar were to deny the O&G resources have been used to develop Peninsular Malaysia.
Its president Voon Lee Shan said Anwar’s suggestion that things in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 “could be negotiated a little more” seemed to be unable to bring an end soon to the “ghost” that has been haunting Federal and State governments of Sabah an Sarawak for past years.
“The prime minister may need to be informed that the people of Sabah and Sarawak are aware that the main intention for having the Federation of Malaysia formed was to protect the interest of the British in South East Asia after World War II and for Malaya to benefit from the oil resources of Sabah and Sarawak.
“If the prime minister wishes to deny that the fact that these oil and gas resources had never been used to develop Malaya, then repeal the Petroleum Development Act 1974, Seas Territorial Act and also the Continental Shelf Act and to return all oil and gas resources to Sabah and Sarawak,” said Voon.
He said many Sabahans and Sarawakians in 1960s did not agree as to how the Federation of Malaysia should be formed. This led to huge public demonstrations against the idea because Sabah and Sarawak were not granted independence by the British before deciding on Malaysia be formed.
To him, to restore all rights of Sarawak, all must begin with putting back Sabah and Sarawak to their original positions as countries, not as regions or provinces within the Federation of Malaysia.
He explained that this was because Malaysia was a plan for Greater Malaya and it is difficult to dispute that Sabah and Sarawak had not been absorbed, annexed or merged for the plan for Greater Malaya, that is, to enlarge Malaya and this was carefully planned and done by way of MA63.
“The fear now is that the term, region (wilayah) or province being used as suggested by some federal and local leaders, will one day see Sabah and Sarawak becoming federal territories and be called as Wilayah Persekutuan Sabah and also Wilayah Persekutuan Sarawak.
“This will be like Labuan, which is now known as Wilayah Persekutuan Labuan.
“If this happens, the immigration laws protecting the rights of Sabah and Sarawak under MA63 will be left redundant,” said Voon in a press statement today. — DayakDaily
