The One-Third Seats in Parliament was forced by Tunku Abdul Rahman for Sarawak and Sabah to accept after Sarawak and Sabah after Singapore, Sarawak and Sabah were acquired Malaya to enlarge the territories of Malaya. Malaya then took a new name of Malaysia.

This is not fair to Sarawak and Sabah because Tunku offered equal partnership to Sarawak and Sabah once Malaysia was formed.

The seats allocations seemed was forced to Sarawak and Sabah to accept or to leave it. The GPS government cannot come to say that there is a constitutional safeguard provided in the Malaysia Agreement 1963(MA63) and Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) Report 1962 concerning the allocation of seats in Parliament when the formation of Malaysia was known to came in existence after some strong arms tactics and dubious means, according to researchers. Short to say, the formation of Malaysia was tainted. It was said the formation of Malaysia was against international law and will of the local people at that time, in which, for these reasons, was opposed by Indonesia and the Philippines.

It is a betrayal to the people of Sarawak and Sabah if the GPS government is allowed to support only one One-Third Seats for Sarawak and Sabah in parliament because Malaya and the British did not come with clean hands on this matter. If there is equal partnership, Sarawak and Sabah should have two-third seats in parliament and the remaining one-third should then be allocated to Malaya.

To allow one-third seats will also see there is no protection to Sarawak and Sabah because Article 47 federal constitution allows Malayan political parties to contest in any parliamentary seats allocated to Sarawak and Sabah. This Article 47 federal constitution also allows any Malayans to contest elections in Sarawak. This will serve no purpose at all even if the two-third seats are allocated to Sarawak and Sabah.

The state and federal constitutions have to be amended to prohibit political parties from Malaya to contest any federal and state seats in Sarawak and Sabah. To allow Malayan political parties to contest in Sarawak and Sabah amount to interference with the affairs of Sarawak and Sabah by Malaya and allows the taking of rights of people of Sarawak and Sabah to contest seats allocated to Sarawak and Sabah.

VOON LEE SHAN
President, Parti Bumi Kenyalang