Sarawak deputy minister says calls to cancel Malaysia Agreement 1963 show historical ignorance and attack constitutional integrity of Federation.
KUCHING: Calls from some quarters to cancel the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) show their ignorance of history, the Sarawak State Assembly was told today.
Deputy Minister in the Sarawak Premier’s Department (Law, MA63 and State-Federal Relations) Datuk Sharifah Hasidah Sayeed Aman Ghazali said the call is also a blatant attack on the constitutional integrity of the Federation.
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“The MA63 is the foundational instrument that gave legal effect to the formation of the Federation of Malaysia. Without MA63, the Federation itself has no constitutional basis to exist.
“Any suggestion to cancel or abolish MA63 is therefore constitutionally untenable,” she said during Question Time in reply to Chieng Jin Ek (GPS-Bukit Assek) on the current negotiation status of MA63 for Sarawak.
On the latest negotiation status of the MA63, Sharifah Hasidah said that among matters that have been partially resolved is the financial review under Article 112D of the Federal Constitution.
“In this regard, as an interim arrangement, the Federal Government has agreed to increase the amount of the Special Grant for Sarawak from RM300 million in 2024 to RM600 million in 2025 for a period of five years.
“We also hope the Special Grant Formula we have proposed to the Federal Government will be approved soon,” she added. – Bernama
