Kuala Lumpur: Kota Belud MP Munirah Majilis (pic) has urged Sabahans to unite and take charge of their state’s destiny, saying the time has come for Sabah to stop relying on parties from Peninsular Malaysia.
Speaking in the Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday (Oct 15), Munirah said Malaysia’s political structure clearly shows how Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak and Sabah differ in representing their people’s interests.
She said there are a total of 600 state assembly seats nationwide — 445 in Peninsular Malaysia, 82 in Sarawak and 73 in Sabah.
“Out of the 445 seats in the peninsula, Pakatan Harapan holds 131, Perikatan Nasional 207, Barisan Nasional 105 and Parti Muda one,” she said.
“That means 100 per cent of the seats in the peninsula are held by Peninsular-based parties. Not a single seat is represented by a party from Sabah or Sarawak.”She said the situation in Sarawak is entirely different.
“Of the 82 seats in the Sarawak State Assembly, 79 are held by Sarawak-based parties under Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), one by an independent and two by Pakatan Harapan,” she said.
“This means 98 per cent of the seats are held by Sarawak parties, while only two per cent belong to Peninsular parties.”Munirah said this unity has enabled Sarawak to decide on its own policies and development priorities.
“Sarawak decides on its own ports, obtains federal approval for its projects and even provides free education for its students,” she said.
“Why? Because Sarawak makes its own decisions — and its people are united behind local parties.” Munirah said Sabah’s situation, however, remains mixed.
“Based on the 2020 state election, of the 73 seats in Sabah, Warisan holds 29, Perikatan Nasional 17, Barisan Nasional 14, Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) seven, independents three, PKR two and Upko one,” she said.
“This means only 58 per cent of seats are held by Sabah-based parties, 36 per cent by Peninsular parties and six per cent by independents.”She said these figures show how Sabah still shares control of its assembly with parties from outside the state.
“In the peninsula, 100 per cent of the seats belong to Peninsular parties. In Sarawak, 98 per cent belong to Sarawak parties. But in Sabah, we are still sharing,” she said.
“Is that how it should be?” she asked.
Munirah said her remarks were not intended to provoke division but to remind Sabahans of their right to self-govern.
“I am not against my friends from the peninsula. You are my family, and I love and respect you,” she said.
“But I also have my right as a Sabahan — my right to defend our state. The time has come. Let Sabah be managed by Sabahans,” she added.