KUCHING: The Deputy Speaker of the State Legislatyive Assembly, Datuk Idris Buang, has refuted former Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Azhar Azizan Harun (Art Harun) regarding the latter’s view that there is no legal basis for Sabah and Sarawak to hold one-third of parliamentary seats.
He insisted that the claim is grounded in the recommendations of the Cobbold Commission, the Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) Report, and the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).
In a statement issued today (29th September), Idris called Art Harun’s conclusion “fallacious and sadly wrong,” arguing that it overlooks the constitutional architecture that preceded the formation of Malaysia.
“He loses sight of the whole picture. These are the documents upon which the legal basis for the Borneo States’ claims is made.
“There is no doubt about it,” Idris said, pointing to the IGC Report, incorporated into MA63, and MA63’s recognition in the Federal Constitution via the 2022 amendments to Article 160.
Idris cited paragraph 19(2) of the IGC Report, which recommended amending Article 46(1) to expand the Dewan Rakyat from 104 to 159 seats (including 15 for Singapore), with 24 seats for Sarawak and 16 for North Borneo (Sabah).
He noted that the IGC agreed that the proportion of seats allocated to Sarawak and North Borneo “should not be reduced” for seven years after Malaysia Day without the concurrence of the state governments, and thereafter only by a two-thirds constitutional majority.
According to Idris, the IGC’s safeguards flowed from the Cobbold Commission’s emphasis that Sabah and Sarawak join Malaysia as “equal partners,” not to be dominated by Malaya.
“The keywords are ‘should not be reduced’,” he said, describing the clause as a protective mechanism to prevent political domination of the Borneo States.
Idris further argued that when Singapore exited Malaysia, its 15 seats were subsequently absorbed by Peninsular seats rather than “new states”, and without the consent of Sabah and Sarawak, which he said contravened the intent of paragraph 19(2).
“Not only is there a legal basis, but there is also a moral and ethical obligation, in the name of fairness and honesty, for the Borneo States to be truly accorded equal-partner status,” he said.
Idris, who called for a structural remedy, said that Sabah and Sarawak should jointly hold at least one-third of the total seats in the federal Parliament, with one-third allocated to Sarawak and one-third to Sabah, to ensure a proper balance and avert domination by Malaya.
“To give meaning to equal partnership and to ensure an equitable sense of balance, the Borneo States should be given at least one-third of the total seats,” he said, adding that Sarawak and Sabah have remained “in perpetuum fidelis” (forever loyal) to Malaysia.
