The 20-point Malaysian Agreement For Sabah

LESS WE FORGET.....

Point 1: Religion

While there was no objection to Islam being the national religion of Malaysia, there should be no State religion in North Borneo, and the provisions relating to Islam in the present Constitution of Malaya should not apply in North Borneo.

Point 2: Language

(a) Malay should be the national language of the Federation.
(b) English should continue to be used for a period of ten years after Malaysia Day.
(c) English should be the official language of North Borneo for all purposes, State or Federal without limitation of time.

Point 3: Constitution

Whilst accepting that the present Constitution of the Federation of Malaya should form the basis of the Constitution of Malaysia, the Constitution of Malaysia should be a completely new document drafted and agreed in the light of free association of States and should not be a series of amendments to a constitution drafted and agreed by different States in totally different circumstances. A new Constitution for North Borneo was, of course, essential.

Point 4: Head of the Federation

The Head of State in North Borneo should not be eligible for election as Head of the Federation.

Point 5: Name of the Federation

"Malaysia" but not "Melayu Raya"

Point 6: Immigration

Control over immigration into any part of Malaysia from outside should rest with the Federation Government but entry into North Borneo should also require approval of the State Government. The Federal Government should not be able to veto the entry of persons into North Borneo for State Government purposes except on strictly security grounds. North Borneo should have unfettered control over the movement of reasons, other than those in Federal Government employ, from other parts of Malaysia into North Borneo.


Point 7: Right of Secession

There should be no right to secede from the Federation.

Point 8: Borneanisation

Borneanisation of the public services should proceed as quickly as possible.

Point 9: British Officers

Every effort should be made to encourage British Officers to remain in the public services until their places can be taken by suitably qualified people from North Borneo.

Point 10: Citizenship

The recommendations in paragraph 148 (K) of the Report of the Cobbold commission should govern the citizenship rights of persons in the Federation of North Borneo subject to the following amendments.

(a) Subparagraph (1) should not contain the provision as to fie years residence.

(b) In order to tie up with our law, subparagraph (1a) should read 'seven out of ten years' instead of 'eight out of twelve years'.

(c) Subparagraph (III) should not contain any restriction tied to the citizenship of parents – a person born in North Borneo after Malaysia must be a Federal citizen.

Point 11: Tariff and Finance

North Borneo should have control of its own finance, development funds and tariffs.

Point 12: Special Position of Indigenous Races

In principle, the indigenous races of North Borneo should enjoy special rights analogous to those enjoyed by Malays in Malaya, but the present Malaya formula is this regard is not necessarily applicable in North Borneo.

Point 13: State Government

(a) The Chief Minister should be elected by unofficial members of Legislative Council.
(b) There should be a proper Ministerial system in North Borneo.


Point 14: Transitional Period

This should be seven years and during such period legislative powers must be left with the State of North Borneo by the Constitution and not merely delegated to the State Government by the Federal Government.

Point 15: Education

The existing educational system of North Borneo should be maintained and for this reason it should be under State control.

Point 16: Constitutional Safeguards

No amendment, modification or withdrawal of any special safeguards granted to North Borneo should be made by the Central Government without the positive concurrence of the Government of the State of North Borneo. The power of amending the Constitution of the State of North Borneo should belong exclusively to the people of the State.

Point 17: Representation in the Federal Parliament

This should take account not only of the population of North Borneo but also of its size and potentialities and in any case should not be less than that of Singapore.

Point 18: Name of Head of State

Yang Dipertua Negara

Point 19: Name of State

Sabah

Point 20: Land, Forests, Local Government, etc

The provisions in the Constitution of the Federation in respect of the power of the National Land Council should not apply in North Borneo. Likewise, the National Council for the Local Government should not apply in North Borneo.

Sabah Bumis doomed due to loopholes in the land laws: Ex-Minister

Kota Kinabalu: The Government has been urged to impose a limit to non-Sabahans owning land in Sabah and to set aside land for the indigenous people who are still lagging behind, like the Malay reserves in Peninsular Malaysia.

Veteran politician, Datuk Ayub Aman, said he was saddened by the unfettered changing of hands in land ownership from the indigenous people to non-Sabahans.

"The loopholes in our land laws should be plugged. As it is today, even native titles can be leased for a period, which is as good as owning such land," he lamented.

With the present scarcity of available land and at the pace of ownership change from the indigenous people to non-bumiputeras, especially to non-Sabahans, as well as the policy of alienating vast tracts to big companies, including public listed companies, the fate of the bumiputeras in land ownership is doomed, Ayub predicted.

Ayub also slammed the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) for calling on the Government to scrap the work permit requirement for non-Sabahan Malaysians seeking employment and business in Sabah.

He said the Immigration power of the State Government is about the only meaningful right left under the 20-Point agreement entered between Sabah/Sarawak and the then Malayan Government as a post-Malaysia safeguard to protect the interests of the people in either State.

At least in Sabah most of the rest of the 20 Points have either been diluted beyond any functional value or evolved into oblivion through entrenchment of the federal system, albeit with the consent of succeeding political leaders, he added. Among others, these included State religion.

Under the 20-Point agreement, Sabah, having a multi-religious and multi-cultural population, was not to have a State religion although it was accepted that Islam was the State religion at national level, which was scrapped during the Usno era, he said.

On the Immigration issue, Ayub said apart from still being relevant, it is also pertinent to the uniqueness and agreed autonomy of Sabah within Malaysia as intended by the founding fathers.

As such, the issue should not and must not be compromised, let alone call for its abolition, he stressed.

He recalled that State control of immigration was one of the many safeguards to protect the interests of Sabahans strongly advocated by OKK Sedomon Gunsanad, a Pasok Momogun leader then, because he was concerned about the locals' inability to compete with the more aggressive and knowledgeable non-Sabahans in terms of exploiting socio-economic opportunities.

This happened when Tun Razak visited him at his house in Keningau to explain the Malaysia concept prior to the establishment of Malaysia.

OKK Sedomon's requests were subsequently taken up by the Sabah Alliance Party and, hence, the drafting and finally the birth of the 20-Point agreement.

Ayub who served as Cabinet Minister in the Berjaya government, admitted that it was a mistake for the Berjaya Government to open the immigration gate to Sarawakians.

But he maintained that the policy was well intended since the understanding was mutual between both states. However, until today, Sarawak has not reciprocated.

"Given the raison d'être behind the immigration right of both Sabah and Sarawak, I think the Sarawak leaders were being wise, while we were being naively generous," he opined.

To LDP's Datuk Chin Su Phin's contention that it was the politicians rather than the people who want the immigration control over fellow Malaysians from outside Sabah, Ayub said:

"This a representative democracy for goodness sake. However, LDP and Chin may declare their contention to the people come next election and they can treat the issue as a referendum to prove their point."

"I suggest that Chin seek the view of the political elders who were directly involved in the formation of Malaysia, specifically on the spirit behind the request for and the grant of the state power on immigration and the 20 Points, in general."

He said that whatever was left of the 20-Point agreement are being zealously guarded by the people of Sabah.

Ayub agreed with PBS President Datuk Joseph Pairin Kitingan that the State's right and autonomy have nothing to do with the 1Malaysia concept, which is currently being promoted to unite the nation.

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JADI WAHAI PARA PEMIMPIN SABAH YANG BIJAKSANA..... BAGAIMANAKAH TAN SRI- TAN SRI DATUK-DATUK... TUAN-TUAN... MENYELESAIKAN MASALAH INI? ATAU KAMURANG TUNGGU SAMPAI ANAK CUCU KITA JADI PELARIAN DI NEGERI SENDIRI?