SARAWAK Deputy Chief Minister James Masing has slammed the cabinet steering committee to review the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), saying it is “Malaya-heavy”.

He said of the committee’s 17 members, only seven are from Sarawak and Sabah.

He said the Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad-chaired committee should have five members each from Sabah and Sarawak, so as to reflect the states’ position as equal partners in the federation.

“Equal reps if we are of equal status.”

The seven members are Sarawak Chief Minister Abang Johari Openg, Sabah Chief Minister Mohd Shafie Apdal, Works Minister Baru Bian (Sarawak), International Trade and Industry Minister Darell Leiking (Sabah), Sabah Attorney-General Zaleha Rose Pandin, Sarawak Attorney-General Talat Mahmood Abdul Rashid, and Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak David Wong Dak Wah (Sabah).

Masing said Sabah and Sarawak “from the onset have been cheated of their role in the MA63 discussion”.

“They want to put us at a numerical disadvantage. Do they think they are smarter, therefore, they have more people?”

He accused the Pakatan Harapan government of being insincere about wanting to return equal status to Sabah and Sarawak, and suggested that the two states boycott the committee.

“Malaya never ceases to treat us as its distant second cousin. If there is no sincerity, then there should be no discussion with Malaya on MA63.

“In my opinion, Sarawak and Sabah should not participate in the discussion.

“Why should we, when Malaya is not sincere in its intention to make Sarawak and Sabah part of the Malaysian Federation?”

The other members of the committee are Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Liew Vui Keong, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng, Economic Affairs Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali, Communications and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo, Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah, Transport Minister Anthony Loke, Chief Secretary to the Government Dr Ismail Bakar, Attorney-General Tommy Thomas and Universiti Malaya law professor Shad Saleem Faruqi.

Liew, who is de facto law minister, yesterday said the committee will meet in about a month in Putrajaya, to determine the direction to take regarding MA63.

Abang Johari had earlier disputed the formation of the committee.

He said he prefers the committee to be modelled after the Inter-Governmental Committee set up by the British government in 1961 to look into the formation of Malaysia. – October 11, 2018.