Parti Bersatu Sabah Secretary General Datuk Joniston Bangkuai (fourth right) and Kiulu Assistant District Officer Justin Ginduk (fifth left) with the newly appointed Kiulu village chiefs.
KOTA KINABALU: Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) has urged Warisan deputy president Datuk Darell Leiking to join the wagon in solving issues pertaining to Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) rather than throwing challenges.
“Why exert pressure by throwing challenges? As a fellow Sabahan, isn’t it better if we could work together and find solutions to the remaining MA63 issues?” PBS Secretary-General Datuk Joniston Bangkuai asked, in response to Leiking’s recent challenge to Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Sabah and Sarawak Affairs) Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili.
Bangkuai said Ongkili, who is PBS president, had continuously worked hard and had engaged with relevant bodies, such as the Sabah Law Society, Institute of Development Studies Sabah, and others, to better understand the MA63.
In fact, when Ongkili took the office last year, he stressed that in the first six months, issues pertaining to MA63 would be his top priority.
“He (Ongkili) is not sitting on his laurel. The minister is and has been working really hard and in fact, has passed a milestone in terms of finding solutions to resolve MA63 through the formation of the Special Council on MA63, whose members include the governments of both Sabah and Sarawak.
“Many tangible outcomes have been achieved, both in policy and laws, especially in terms of aspirations and goals of fulfilling the MA63 terms. The minister’s (Ongkili) reappointment to the same portfolio will provide an avenue for him to resume and continue the works on MA63 where he has left.
“But, of course, we will be able to have better results if everyone is on board. Instead of belittling the works that had been done on MA63, why doesn’t he (Leiking) work with us, and together, we will be able to resolve what the Pakatan Harapan-Warisan government failed to achieve when they were in power,” said Bangkuai, who is also the Assistant Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister and Kiulu assemblyman.
After all, Bangkuai noted that as far as East Malaysians are concerned, Sabahans and Sarawakians have the same target and common aspirations.
“It is to our understanding that Leiking’s claim that Pakatan Harapan-Warisan had resolved 17 out of the 21 MA63 issues is not true, instead the PH-Warisan government had just agreed to address these 17 issues.
“There was no ultimate decision and exchange of documents between the Federal and State Governments on any of the 17 issues during the PH government. There were mere commitments on their part to resolve those 17 issues, but policies, laws, and regulations were yet to be changed.
“Among the 17 issues include the administration of the Sipadan and Ligitan Islands and Sarawak control and management of gas distribution under the Distribution of Gas Ordinance 2016. The two long-outstanding issues have finally found a breakthrough during the Special Council meeting on Malaysia Agreement 1963, held on April 21, 2021 which was chaired by former Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin,” Bangkuai explained.
Meanwhile, PBS thanked Prime Minister Datuk Sri Ismail Sabri Yaakob for reappointing Ongkili to the federal cabinet.
Describing the reappointment as acknowledging PBS’ consistent stand and struggle on Sabah’s rights, Bangkuai said Ongkili’s reappointment is most apt considering the good work he started when he first took office in April last year.
“We (PBS) believe that with his vast experience and determination, the aspirations of Sabahans and Sarawakians to see their rights as enshrined in the MA63 will be met,” Bangkuai said during a meeting with newly appointed village chiefs here.
He also stressed that with political will and cooperation of all quarters, especially the full support of the Federal Government, the MA63 demands can be realised to the satisfaction of the rakyat in the Borneon territories.