By Lian Cheng
KUCHING, Jun 24: Rumours have been rife that the upcoming single-day Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUS) on July 7, 2025 involves the introduction of a bill to increase 15 parliamentary and 17 State seats, resulting in a total of 46 parliamentary seats and 99 State constituencies.
To ascertain whether there is any truth in the rumours, both a State lawmaker and a full minister upon consulting, said they had yet to receive any written motion from the DUS secretary, thus unable to confirm or dispel the rumours.
There was an attempt by the media to seek clarification from Premier Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg especially after the Gawai Dayak 2025 Gala Dinner on Jun 22 (Sunday). The effort, however, was in vain when Abang Johari made a swift exit after the event.
Following the demise of Abang Johari’s wife Datin Patinggi Puan Sri Datuk Amar Juma’ani Tun Tuanku Bujang the next day on June 23 (Monday), it is foreseen that the Sarawak media, who have been enjoying good relations with Abang Johari, would not have the heart to press him for an answer, especially after witnessing him bursting in tears when hugged by some of his long-term trusty political comrades and colleagues during Juma’ani’s wake at Masjid Jamek.
However, re-delineation exercise of every eight years as stipulated by the Federal Constitution Article 113(2)(ii) cannot wait. It is again time for Sarawak to re-delineate its constituency boundary after its last exercise in 2015 where 11 seats were created. The next one has been due in 2023, as required by the law.
That was why Federal Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Ramkarpal Singh had on Nov 8, 2023 reported to the Parliament that the re-delineation of electoral boundaries has started in Sarawak, and that of Sabah in 2025, and Peninsular Malaysia 2026.
Even before the required re-delineation exercises whether State or federal, Sarawak which is relentlessly pursuing its autonomy and rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and Intergovernmental Committee (IGC) Report, has been pushing hard for fairer parliamentary representation.
In the most recent interview on May 25, Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) Information Chief Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said Sarawak and Sabah may be allocated additional 25 parliamentary seats to allow the two Bornean States to safeguard their rights.
He said Sarawak has been negotiating for one-third of the total parliamentary seats to reflect the spirt and understanding when Sarawak and Sabah joined Malaya and Singapore to form the Federation of Malaysia. This is especially crucial because when Singapore exited from the Federation, the 15 seats held by the island nation were taken by Malaya, resulting in disproportionate representation of Sarawak and Sabah in Parliament.
In light of Sarawak’s pursuit of fairer representation in Parliament, it is not surprising that the rumours indicates that the State seeks to pass the bill to increase 15 parliamentary seats (10 for Sabah) to pave way for their final approval in the Parliament in the upcoming the re-delineation exercise in 2026.
Currently, Sarawak holds 31 parliamentary seats and Sabah, 25 out of total 222 seats. An increase of 25 seats means the Bornean States will control 81 seats, which constitutes 33 per cent or one-third out of the total seats of 247 parliamentary seats.
Meanwhile for the increase of 17 State seats in Sarawak and the subsequent total of 99 seats, this is most likely due to the vast land size of Sarawak—124,450 square km and served by only 82 State lawmakers, in comparison to Malaya which has a land size of 132, 490 square km but represented by a total of 445 state assemblymen across all Malaya states. — DayakDaily
