Stop day dreaming about secession
A tongue-in-cheek look at why Sabah and Sarawak should remain loyal to Malaysia
Iskandar Dzulkarnain, Free Malaysia Today
The call for secession by certain political parties, rights groups and NGOs in Sabah and Sarawak has lately grown louder, provoking shock and concern among some peninsular Malaysians.
These groups cite Putrajaya’s arrogance, deprivation of development funds for the two states, corruption, the fostering of unpopular and corrupt local politicians who misappropriate native lands and the insidious socio-political engineering in Sabah as valid reasons for secession.
They lament that the two states remain relatively undeveloped and that their natives hardly enjoy the benefits of being bumiputeras, which became starkly obvious with the recent Federal Court ruling on the “Allah” issue. That ruling had church leaders in Sarawak fuming with rage, pointing out that it effectively made criminals of bumiputera Christians, who have been calling god Allah for generations.
Although these complaints sound legitimate enough, Sabah and Sarawak in fact do not enjoy any secession rights, as pointed out by Kota Belud MP Rahman Dahlan. True enough, one of the 20 points of the Malaysia agreement clearly states that Sabah and Sarawak cannot secede. Rahman said it would be treasonous even to suggest it.
Moreover, the two states must abide by the sentiments of the two thirds who voted for BN, as the majority are clearly against any thought of secession.
Therefore, East Malaysians should stop entertaining such frivolous dreams and remain as loyal fixed deposits to BN. They must resign themselves to their fate, think of the endless possibilities that Prime Minister Najib is offering them, be a 1Malaysian and not question the government.
Political leaders in the two states should stop arm twisting the Federal government on the oil royalty. Demanding for 20% is way too extreme. Maybe a slight increment to 6% could be accommodated, with perhaps a 1% annual increment.
After all, the government has not forced Malaysians to fork out 20% for the GST, but capped it at 6%. Leaders of the two states must remain patient as our oil reserves are not going to run dry any time soon within the next four years.
There is also the fear that if the government gives in to Sabah and Sarawak, states like Kelantan and Terengganu will also demand 20%. At that rate, Petronas can go bankrupt by 2018. We should all stop treating Petronas like our personal cash kitty. It does not belong to us, but to BN for it to do as it pleases.
Besides, our government is building up an oil pension fund for the future, similar to Norway’s. This will benefit all Malaysians one day. That’s why it is important that the accounts of Petronas remain classified under the Prime Minister’s Department.
Do not take seriously Jeffrey Kitingan’s allegation that the Sabah oil wells may dry up in six years or that Petronas may go bust by 2018. This is all hearsay.
Even the awareness that 80% of the oil produced by Petronas is not sold directly to the world market but channelled through six option holders who obtain the supply at well below market prices is not an excuse to demand for higher oil royalty or to opt for secession.
Opposition lies
Stop believing in the opposition lies that Sabah and Sarawak are the poorest states in the Federation. They are not. Kelantan and Terengganu are a little poorer.
Stop blaming Putrajaya for the two states’ misfortunes or underdevelopment if their own hand picked leaders and chief ministers fail to stamp out corruption or lack a proper blueprint for development. Sabah and Sarawak cannot depend on orang utans, timber, hornbills and hydroelectric dams alone to generate income.
Sabah and Sarawak are lacking in natural resources, and this is why they lag behind so miserably.
Putrajaya has poured in countless billions of ringgit to develop the two states, but the development is so spread out over vast territories that it is hard to notice. Remember, the two states are not small like Melaka and Perlis.
As for the presence of thousands of illegal immigrants, it proves the utter failure of the two states to guard their borders vigilantly. Most of the immigrants enter Sabah with ease, carrying fake IC’s probably manufactured in Kalimantan or the Philippines through duplicate printing or simple photostat machines.
Countless investigations have failed to prove the existence of Project IC, even though Sabah opposition politicians incessantly try to implicate Putrajaya.
Sabahans should give the issue a rest, and authorities in the state should take their own initiative to deport these illegal immigrants now, instead of waiting in vain for Putrajaya’s assistance.
