KUCHING, March 24: Sarawakian Senator Robert Lau Hui Yew is calling for Sarawak and Sabah be allocated at least one-third of the Senate seats each.
During his debate on the King’s address yesterday, he stated that seats in both the Dewan Rakyat and the Dewan Negara should be equally distributed based on the three regions of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak, and Sabah.
“Sabah and Sarawak should be dedicated at least one-third of the seats in the Dewan Rakyat. As for the Dewan Negara, the 40 seats under Article 45 (1) (c) of the Federal Constitution (appointed by the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong) should be equally distributed among the three regions,” he said.
Lau backed his call by highlighting that during first Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj’s five-day tour of Sabah and Sarawak in November 1962 to drum up support for the concept of Malaysia, he offered 40 Senate seats in the future.
“At the moment, the Malayan Alliance Government with 77 out of 104 seats is able to change the law and the Constitution at any time, but with the 40 seats from the Borneo Territories, we would not be able to do that unless with the fullest approval of the Bornean representatives,” he quoted Abdul Rahman’s words as reported by the Sarawak Information Service.
He continued by stating that Abdul Rahman’s announcement on Nov 17, 1962 in Jesselton (now Kota Kinabalu) that he would allow Sabah and Sarawak to have 40 seats in the Senate was both welcome news and a generous gesture. — DayakDaily
