Prinsip 1/3 perwakilan bukan perkara boleh dirunding semula, tegas menteri Sarawak

Sarawak Minister Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah has firmly stated that the 1/3 representation principle for Sabah and Sarawak in the Parliament cannot be rethought. The Minister of Tourism, Creative Industries, and Heritage emphasized that this principle traces back to the agreement on Malaysia's formation in 1963. According to the Inter-Governmental and Constitution Committee Report, during that time, 2/3 seats were allotted to the Malay Peninsula, while 1/3 seats were given to Singapore, Sabah, and Sarawak, as per Utusan Borneo's report at a media briefing in Kuching.

The 1963 distribution saw 159 seats in the Dewan Rakyat, with 104 seats reserved for the Malay Peninsula, 16 for Sabah, 24 for Sarawak, and 15 for Singapore. Collectively, Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore had 55 seats, which is less than 1/3 of the total Dewan Rakyat seats. Karim pointed out that this distribution reflects the agreement and negotiation among the leaders involved in the formation of Malaysia.

Furthermore, the imbalance occurs after Singapore left Malaysia in 1965. This means that the current parliamentary composition, which gives the Peninsula more than the majority of 2/3, theoretically allows for constitutional amendments related to Sabah and Sarawak's rights to be passed without the support of representatives from the two states.

Therefore, Karim believes that we want to maintain this 1/3 representation. His statement came after Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's announcement on September 11 that the government agreed to amend the Constitution to allow for the addition of parliamentary representatives from Sabah and Sarawak. Anwar stated that any addition of seats could also include the Peninsula, but the main principle is that the ratio of Sabah and Sarawak seats must be higher than the current status, considering the spirit of the 1963 Malaysia Agreement, which is what our founding fathers intended, and it should be seen by the current generation of heirs, including today's leaders, according to Karim.