Revert State ROS to Own State Control

Kota Kinabalu:    “The decision of the federal Registrar of Societies (ROS) in Putrajaya on SUPP and LDP shows the need for Sabah and Sarawak governments and their people to re-assess the de-merger of the Sabah and Sarawak arm of the ROS” said Datuk Dr. Jeffrey Kitingan, STAR Sabah Chief in commenting on the decision of ROS to de-register 2 branches of SUPP in Sarawak and the picking of the president of LDP in Sabah.

Before the abolishment of the Sabah and Sarawak ROS, they were separate bodies under the jurisdiction of their respective governments and governed by their respective Societies Ordinance.  The Societies Ordinance in Malaya was then revised and passed as the Societies Act, 1966 and extended to Sabah and Sarawak.

In a single move, this has resulted in the loss of autonomy of political parties in Sabah and Sarawak as the power now rests with the federal ROS and the Minister of Home Affairs in Putrajaya.  This was where the meddling of the political parties in Sabah and Sarawak began.

PBDS and SNAP who were then parties of strength in Sarawak were de-registered by the federal ROS to split the natives.   In Sabah, PDS (now Upko) and SAPP were approved, at the speed of lightning in ROS terms for applicants which takes years to approve, and taken into the BN coalition to topple the ruling PBS which was in opposition to the BN in Sabah.

Umno was then allowed into Sabah to replace USNO.   Efforts to revive USNO even Kelab USNO as an NGO society were thwart by the powers in Putrajaya despite assurances of approval after the 2008 general election given by the then PM at a meeting to nail down USNO’s support for the election.   After the election, the assurances were cast aside and then thrown down the drain by the current PM.

The federal ROS refused to approve any political party before the 13th general election for fear of affecting the BN’s chances of electoral victory.   Post GE-13, a total of 20 political parties were approved in a flurry with 11 for Sabah but no USNO. 

If Umno can be re-registered as Umno Baru, there is no reason for the federal ROS to disallow the re-registration of SNAP and USNO who were instrumental in the formation of Malaysia in 1963.

Seems like the only way out for Sabah and Sarawak politics is to create a level playing field and to restore a resemblance of the autonomy before the manipulation of the federal government of Malaya masquerading as the federal government of Malaysia.   This necessarily require the revival of the Sabah and Sarawak ROS and the removal of the vice-like grip of the federal ROS over Sabah and Sarawak.

Like the efforts of the CM of Sarawak to keep out Umno from Sarawak, an autonomous Sabah ROS can act to send Umno back to the Peninsula if that is the wish of the people in Sabah.

If the revival of the Sabah and Sarawak ROS is done by the Sabah and Sarawak governments, there is a good chance of political parties in Sabah and Sarawak being able to truly form a partnership with their counterparts in the Peninsula and truly form a federal government of Malaysia as envisaged by the founding fathers of Malaysia from Sabah, Sarawak, Singapore and Malaya.