Projek SAMA rejected the argument that Sabah and Sarawak should automatically receive 35% of the seats in the Dewan Rakyat, saying there was no such provision in MA63.
PETALING JAYA: Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan should be given a 35% constitutional veto power in the Dewan Negara to address concerns over the rights and representation of the Borneo territories, said Project Stability and Accountability for Malaysia (Projek SAMA).
In a Malaysia Day statement, the group proposed expanding the Dewan Negara to 100 members, with 17 senators each allocated to Sabah and Sarawak and one to Labuan.
It said Article 45 of the Federal Constitution could be amended in 2027 without the need for prolonged negotiations with other states or constituency delineation.
Projek SAMA also proposed that senators from East Malaysia be elected rather than appointed by state governments, with the electoral system to be determined under state law.
It said the veto power could be further strengthened by requiring any constitutional amendment affecting the rights of Sabah and Sarawak under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) to secure a two-thirds majority approval from the respective state assemblies.
The group said the proposal was necessary to address what it described as “Borneo anxiety” over concerns that Sabah and Sarawak could be disadvantaged by political forces in Peninsular Malaysia.
At the same time, Projek SAMA rejected the argument that Sabah and Sarawak should automatically receive 35% of the seats in the Dewan Rakyat, saying there was no such provision in MA63.
It said the original shares for Sarawak and Sabah in 1963 were 15.6% and 10.4% respectively, and were preserved only until August 1970 under Article 161(2)(2e) of the Federal Constitution.
“After 63 years of suffocating centralisation, Malaysia needs a well-planned and orderly decentralisation roadmap,” it said, calling for greater powers to be devolved to all states, with Sabah and Sarawak receiving more powers than the states in Peninsular Malaysia.
Projek SAMA also called for Sabah and Sarawak to be formally recognised as “regions” under Article 1(2) of the Federal Constitution, rather than being treated simply as Borneo states.
It proposed a “1+2+11” negotiation framework involving the Federal Government, Sabah and Sarawak, and the 11 states in Peninsular Malaysia.
The group argued that the Federal Government should not automatically be assumed to represent the interests of all 11 Peninsular states in negotiations over the distribution of parliamentary seats.
It cited 2024 figures showing differences in parliamentary representation, with Selangor having 174,225 voters per parliamentarian and Terengganu 118,604, compared with a national average of 64,951.
Sabah and Sarawak had 69,352 and 64,204 voters per parliamentarian respectively, it said.
Projek SAMA said any future amendment to Article 46 affecting the total number or distribution of Dewan Rakyat seats should therefore involve all 11 Peninsular states.
The group also urged Malaysians to acknowledge the country’s constitutional history, including the Federal Constitution, MA63, parliamentary democracy, constitutional monarchies and the common law system.
It said political narratives portraying Malaysia as merely an extension of Malaya, rejecting the Federal Constitution or MA63, or seeking to alter the country’s plural constitutional character could undermine the foundations of the federation.
Projek SAMA said decentralisation should ultimately be pursued through a structured roadmap aimed at creating a stronger Federation of Malaysia.
.jpg)
