THE 59 MPs who abstained last night from voting on the amendment to Article 1(2) of the federal constitution have shown by their action that they are not committed to the reform agenda, Petaling Jaya MP Maria Chin Abdullah said today.

“Last night, 59 MPs … abstained from voting for the amendment, thus denying the government its two-thirds majority needed to realise the motion,” she said, adding that this resulted in a missed opportunity to restore the rights of Sabah and Sarawak.

“These MPs were blinded by their political interests and have forsaken the struggles and aspirations of the people of Sabah and Sarawak,” she said in a statement.

She said that by objecting or not voting, they have effectively retained Sabah and Sarawak as associate members of Malaysia.

The government failed to acquire the two-thirds majority or 148 votes required to amend the constitution in order to restore Sabah and Sarawak to their original status in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63). The Pakatan Harapan government only secured 138 votes. – Bernama, April 10, 2019.