USA backs Harris’ proposal to turn Malaysia into a union
KOTA KINABALU: The proposal by former chief minister Tan Sri Harris Salleh to convert Malaysia into a union is an excellent idea that should be implemented, said the Sabah’s opposition coalition, United Sabah Alliance (USA).
USA vice president Datuk Dr. Jeffrey G. Kitingan conveyed the opposition coalition’s support in a statement here, saying that Harris’s proposal is innovative and should be received with support from all quarters, either parties in the Barisan Nasional as well as in the opposition.
“We all have to admit the stark reality that for several years now people in Sabah and Sarawak have been very jittery on the issue of their position in the Malaysian federation,” Jeffrey said.
“The very matter of the Borneo states’ position in the federation, involving their rights, autonomy and future has been in the news for so long, and there have been no viable solution.
“The situation has deteriorated to such a point that today the idea of secession is being expressed by people in the two states, especially among the Gen-Y who are worried about their future.”
Jeffrey, who is also the assemblyman for Bingkor and president of Parti Solidariti Tanahairku (STAR), said it’s not very often that he can agree on Harris on most issues, but this time the elder politician has come up with something of a gem that should be acceptable to all Malaysians.
“The idea of a union is an excellent one, firstly because the name will do away with the vague name of ‘federation’,” he explained.
“After more than a century of federalism, the word has taken on something of a stigma. People now no longer see federation as the true and original form of nationhood that it should be.
“Federalism has become so vague because of the conversion of the Borneo states into the twelfth and thirteenth states in Malaysia.
“The present situation has made us in Borneo feel like colonies of Malaya and not as equal partners that together formed the Malaysia federation in 1963,” he added.
“But by becoming a union, a new national definition will come into the picture which will work positively towards making us feel a sense of Malaysianism based on equality with the rights and autonomy reinstated for us.”
He added that the federal government of BN/Umno must realize that the political situation in Malaysia needs a serious revamp by assuaging the Borneo states of their rightful place in Malaysia.
“Failing the implementation of a union as a new form of nationhood, the country is headed for more pressures for rights and autonomy as has been happening in Sarawak,” Jeffrey warned.