By : JOE FERNANDEZ
THE UNPRECEDENTED political
divide in Malaya with the emergence of Pakatan Rakyat (PR) taking half the 165
Malayan seats in Parliament and five states (now four) and Kuala Lumpur on Sat
8 Mar, 2008 opened up a historical window of opportunity for Sabah and Sarawak
to free themselves from the 50-year-long vice-like grip of the Malaya-dominated
Federal Government in Putrajaya.
In 2008, voters in Malaya
voted against the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) and not so much for PR and
hence, it's said, the Opposition Alliance won by default. PR turned in a
miserable performance in 2004 at the 12th General Election.
It can be said that PR
jumped on the makkal sakthi -- people power -- bandwagon effect created by
Hindraf's 25 Nov, 2007 Uprising when 100,000 Indians took to the streets of
Kuala Lumpur. This was followed by the mid-Feb 2008 Rose Rally in Putrajaya. A
series of local authority demolishing of Hindu temples was the proverbial last
straw that broke the camel's back.
Although the Indians don't
have even one seat, parliamentary or state, in Malaya, this marginalised and
disenfranchised Nation in Malaysia decides in 67 parliamentary seats.
This time the new BN-PR
status quo of 2008 is expected to remain in Malaya.
Malaya has too many seats in
Parliament
Indeed, it will even be
surprising if BN does not lose Perak once again as in 2008. Public anger
against the ruling party is at a boiling point in the state. BN, using a
ruthless carrot-and-stick approach including kidnapping the Speaker, the police
raiding the state assembly and the Sultan reportedly being arm-twisted, wrested
back Perak through defections of three vulnerable PR state assemblymen which
sparked a constitutional crisis.
The forthcoming 13th General
Election -- expected between April 28 and Oct 28 -- in Sabah and Sarawak could
be the unfinished, and long delayed, Borneo chapter of the 2008 political
tsunami which was then confined to Malaya.
The consensus in Borneo is
that it's an opportune moment now for all local parties across both sides of
the political divide in Sabah and Sarawak to come together and adopt a common
position as follows on the 13th GE:
(1) say no to the parti
parti Malaya taking any seats, whether parliamentary or state, in Sabah and
Sarawak;
(2) Malaya, as provided by
the constitutional documents on Malaysia, should not have more than one seat
less two-third in the Malaysian Parliament, at the very maximum.
This is not reflected in the
165 seats currently held by Malaya in Parliament i.e. 18 more than it should
have given the present 222-seat Parliament.
Taib Mahmud has finally run
out of luck
To add insult to injury, the
parti parti Malaya hold both parliamentary and state seats in Sabah and Sarawak
and have plans to seize even more seats as both the ruling Barisan Nasional
(BN) and PR try to outdo each other;
(3) Taib Mahmud, who has
painted himself into a corner through gross abuse of power and conflict of
interest, should step down for the sake of Sarawak. He can thereby avoid being
blackmailed by either PR or BN and as well prevent the parti parti Malaya from
striking further roots in this Nation.
In any case, Taib can no
longer lead a charmed life as in the past three decades and more. He has run
out of luck as Prime Minister Mohd Najib Abdul Razak no longer trusts him,
fearing the highly vulnerable leader's defection to PR, and will pick the
parliamentary candidates in Sarawak, as in Sabah, himself. Najib is also
picking the state candidates in Sabah. There will be no state election in
Sarawak this year;
(4) Sabah and Sarawak should
not continue to be hoodwinked by Putrajaya's big talk on so-called development
in Borneo.
The fact that Sabah and
Sarawak are the poorest Nations in Malaysia speaks volumes.
In addition, not only Sabah
and Sarawak but Malaysia as well compares unfavourably with Singapore which
left Malaysia in 1965 after two years in the Federation and Brunei which stayed
out at the 11th hour; and
(5) the eradication of the
grinding poverty of Sabah and Sarawak hinges on these Nations getting back
control over their politics, resources and revenue from the racism, prejudice
and opportunism-ridden Putrajaya.
Sabah, Sarawak must regain
control over its resources
Last year, Putrajaya
plundered Sabah alone to the tune of RM 50 billion by conservative estimates.
This does not take into account losses incurred by Sabah under the National
Cabotage Policy, rakings by Malayan companies sitting on native land and
gambling monies flowing to the Peninsula.
The objective of regaining
control over politics, resources and revenue, in furtherance of its manifest
destiny, will not be achieved if the parti parti Malaya continue to steal
seats, parliamentary and state, in these Nations.
It would be tragic if Sabahans
and Sarawakians don't capitalise on the political divide in Malaya since 2008
to secure their rightful place in the sun.
Borneons may quarrel among
themselves but they need to unite in the face of a common external threat and
enemy.
Unity is strength.
Putrajaya capitalising on
disunity in Sabah, Sarawak
Malaya has indeed emerged
over the last half century as the arch enemy of Borneo, the real crocodile in
the region, as warned by President Sukarno in 1964 at the height of his Ganyang
Malaysia (Hang Malaysia) movement driven by Indonesia's policy of konfrontasi
(confrontation) towards the neo-colonialist Malaysia created by the British
disingenuously after both Sabah and Sarawak became free nations.
Sabah obtained its
independence on 31 Aug, 1963 and Sarawak the same year on 22 July.
Malaysia only came into
being on 16 Sept, 1963, dragging in Sabah and Sarawak without referendum, to
facilitate Chinese-majority Singapore's independence through merger with almost
Chinese-majority Malaya. The Orang Asal population of Sabah and Sarawak were
ostensibly needed by the Malay-speaking communities in Malaya, and the tiny
Orang Asal (Orang Asli) population there, to provide greater balance against
the Chinese population.
If Borneons don't unite,
Malaya will take advantage of their disunity to continue creating proxies,
stooges and rogue elements from among them to continuing serving their
nefarious ends, for want of a better term.
Once Borneons have disposed
of Malaya from their politics, they can "go back to quarrelling among
themselves".
Sabah and Sarawak should not
worry about which coalition in Malaya grabs Putrajaya.
They need to foster in
themselves a sense of professional detachment when dealing with Malaya. The
abuses there, if any, are none of their concern.
United Sabah, Sarawak can
lay claim to PM’s post
Instead, they should be
willing to work in pragmatic partnership, within or outside Government, with
whichever coalition in Malaya can lay claim to Putrajaya.
This ideal is being actively
promoted by the State Reform Party (Star) led by Jeffrey Kitingan. The Star
chairman, the de facto Orang Asal chief, prefers Borneo to throw its backing
for strategic reasons behind whichever Malayan coalition emerges as the weaker
one in Parliament.
Sabah and Sarawak will
indeed be in a spot if BN stakes claim to Putrajaya and PR refuses to concede
defeat and instead takes to the streets. Conversely, PR could win a bigger
share of parliamentary seats vis-a-vis BN, but the latter may claim having the single
biggest block of seats since the former isn't a registered coalition but three
parties contesting under their respective symbols. Again, it's unlikely that PR
will cave in that easily into semantics.
Borneo can seize the reins
of power in Putrajaya if it secures a united block of 50 seats in Parliament to
lay claim to the Prime Minister's post in partnership with whichever coalition
in Malaya is willing to eat humble pie and settle for the Deputy Prime
Minister's post despite having more seats than the Borneo block. Even, then the
Malayan partner is not expected to have more than 70 seats at the very most.
Agenda Borneo vs Agenda
parti parti Malaya in Borneo
A Malaysian Prime Minister
from Borneo will be able to set aside the written Constitution of Malaya which
is being passed off as the written Constitution of Malaysia and give the
unwritten Constitution of Malaysia -- part of the Agenda Borneo -- its rightful
place. That would underline Sabah and Sarawak as Nations in Malaysia and not
the 12th and 13th states in a Federation of Malaya masquerading as the
Federation of Malaysia.
The local parties who refuse
to co-operate on Agenda Borneo -- everything against the Agenda parti parti
Malaya in Borneo -- are no doubt traitors, indeed treasonous elements, who are
willing to betray their own people.
No doubt they want to
continue being proxies, stooges and rogue elements of Malaya, like Judas
Iscariot in return for the proverbial 30 pieces of silver, in order to
facilitate Putrajaya's internal colonisation policies in Sabah and Sarawak.
It's only a matter of time before they realise the folly of their ways and hang
themselves in shame and disgrace.
It's a tragedy that there
are people among the people of Borneo who take no pride in themselves and their
people, and who have no guts to stand on their own two feet but prefer to
shamelessly latch on to outsiders, willing to be sycophants for self-serving
reasons. Their children and grandchildren will urinate on their graves. The
outsiders, as evident from the grinding poverty of Sabah and Sarawak, are the
worst form of parasites, leeches and bloodsuckers to ever walk the Earth.
People of Borneo deserve
better after 50 years of Malaysia
There's the traditional
falling out among thieves taking place in Malaya as they eye Borneo.
PR has pledged that it will
"steal less oil and gas" -- that's what it means -- from Sabah and
Sarawak, i.e. only 80 per cent, compared with BN's 95 per cent in the inner
waters and 100 per cent in the outer waters where most of the wells are
situated.
Already, BN apologists in
Sabah and Sarawak are claiming that national oil corporation Petronas would go
bust if PR makes good its pledge.
The last thing on the minds
of Sabahans and Sarawakians is any fate that may be in store for Petronas.
Their only concern is to
take the right path as they stand at a historical crossroads come the 13th GE.
Indeed the window of
opportunity opened up for Borneo by 2008 may never be repeated for another half
century if Sabah and Sarawak were to root for either BN or PR or both.
The people of Sabah and
Sarawak deserve better after 50 years of suffering under a bad British idea
called Malaysia.
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