It's Not A Question of Secession But Solution - Dr. Jeffrey

Kota Kinabalu:     “When people talk about separation or secession it means that they are fed-up with the situation and see no hope to their future except opting out” said Datuk Dr. Jeffrey Kitingan, STAR Sabah Chief, responding to reports that talk of secession is treasonous and threats of being cited for sedition.

It is wrong for any leader or even the government and Ministers to keep on threatening the people and warning them every time there is a mention of wanting to get out of Malaysia.   Instead, they leaders should take the opportunity to listen to the grouses of the people. They cannot seem to understand or refuse to understand the truth behind the discussions and calls for getting out.

They should acknowledge the rising call for separation/secession as a serious sign of dissatisfaction and a cry for solution to deeper underlying problems.

After 50 years in Malaysia, Malaysians are becoming more and more aware of the true history of formation in 1963 and the distortion and manipulation of the true history and the unfair treatment of Sabah, Sarawak and their people.

The true history is Malaya gained independence on 31 August 1957 and Malaysia was only formed on 16 September 1963 through the federation of Malaya, Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore (which left in 1965) as equal partners.   There was no Malaysia before 1963 and there would be no Malaysia today without Sabah and Sarawak.

What has transpired is Sabah and Sarawak were demoted and down-graded to be the 12th and 13th States of Malaysia from 1976?   

This is not the Malaysia that the founding fathers of Sabah and Sarawak had wanted.   In fact, Tun Fuad Stephens in 1963 rejected that Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei be the 12th, 13th and 14th states when he said the following:-

    “If we had been asked to join Malaysia at the time Malaya achieved independence and Britain made it possible for us, the story would have been a different one.   Now that “merdeka” has been Malaya’s for some years, and we are still struggling towards it, Malaya’s proposal that we join as the 12th, 13th and 14th states savours of imperialism, of a drive to turn us into Malayan colonies ….. To join Malaya, while we are still colonies ….. The implication is to hand (ourselves) over to your control.”

The Malaysia today is not the “Malaysia” that the founding fathers envisaged.   There was to be freedom of religion and autonomy of Sabah and Sarawak as equal partners to Malaya which would include special rights and privileges as well as the indigenous natives of Sabah and Sarawak to be equally treated with the Malays under Article 153 of the Federal Constitution.

Alas, it is not to be.   Today, instead of promoting racial harmony and national unity, the Umno-led federal government is promoting and condoning racial and religious bigotry, intolerance and inciting hatred and diluting and restricting religious freedom.  The indigenous natives are marginalized and in Sabah over-run with illegal immigrants granted dubious ICs and MyKads and with voting rights and the racist Umno treating Sabah as its colony as fixed deposit and private property.

Umno in its racism and racial and religious extremism cannot be better said than Pehin Sri Chief Minister of Sarawak who wanted his successor and other leaders to keep Umno and their brand of politics out of Sarawak.

All in, the people in Sabah and Sarawak cannot be blamed for wanting to opt out since they see no light at the end of the tunnel and their future growing dimmer and dimmer by the day.

As rightly clarified subsequently by the good Prof. James Chin, there is nothing treasonous for the people to consider separation as the only viable option out of the 3 available options, namely, maintaining the status quo with Sabah and Sarawak as the 12th and 13th States and continue to suffer with no hope for their future generations; seeking the restoration of Sabah and Sarawak as equal partners with restoration of the rights, privileges and autonomy of the Borneo States that were taken away or eroded since 1963 which the federal government of Malaya masquerading as the federal government of Malaysia is refusing to even consider a review’ and finally, parting and going separate ways.

Instead of threats by his Ministers, what PM Najib can do as a positive step is to immediately set-up a Cabinet level National Malaysia Review Committee to review the Malaysia Agreement which is long overdue for 40 years.  At the same time, the PM should re-activate the Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) to review and implement the Malaysia Agreement and other recommendations to strengthen the federation-state relations.

The latest threat of sedition by the Umno federal Minister from Sabah is nothing more than pure arrogance and abuse of power and a repeat of the previous unwarranted threats of other federal and Umno Ministers.  

Jeffrey said “Claiming for the restoration of these rights and autonomy are nothing more than the equivalent claim for Malay rights in the Peninsula.   Separation or separation is always an open option, whether it is the best option is a separate matter altogether.”  

Choosing to opt out given no other viable alternative is merely seeking the only viable solution to the problems with no other viable solutions.   The calls and cries of the people in Sabah and Sarawak for their rights and leaving is the result of their political leaders failing to perform what is needed for their people.

The Minister from Sabah, if he still consider himself a Sabahan at heart, should lead the way for the restoration of the position and rights of Sabah and Sarawak and their equal treatment in the federation of Malaysia.   He should not behave as though he is the Minister for Malaya and the Umno Malays and not abuse his position and power to threaten the people who are doing no wrong.   As a Sabahan, he should fight for what is best for Sabah and Sabahans and not what is best for Umno/Malaya.

The biggest threat to the break-up of Malaysia is from the leaders like the Minister and the Umno-led ruling government that in itself is more seditious and a bigger threat to the well-being of the nation.
  
If at all there is any sedition, the Minister should review the calls by his Umno leaders, members and leaders and Umno-back or racist NGOs who threaten other peace loving Malaysians and chasing them out from the federation as well as those that incite racial intolerance and hatred against other Malaysians in the name of Malay rights and religion.