In a speech at the PBS delegates’ conference today, the party’s outgoing president Joseph Pairin Kitingan said that under the MA63, Sabah and Sarawak had a special position at the High Court, separate from that of the High Court of Malaya.
“In the beginning, the Chief Judge of the High Court of Sabah and Sarawak was called the Chief Justice of the High Court of Borneo, but the title was changed to what it is now.
“This has deviated from the original provision under the MA63,” he said.
He added that when Sabah and Sarawak formed the Federation of Malaysia, the existing High Court of Borneo was not incorporated under the High Court of Malaya but was allowed to continue to exist separately as per the agreement.
The Sabah deputy chief minister said other things that needed consideration included the appointment of judicial officers and staff, the appointment of a judicial commissioner, the power to determine the number of judges and the demotion of the status of the High Court of Sabah and Sarawak.
Pairin then thanked Prime Minister Najib Razak for his openness in discussing the MA63 and for abolishing the draconian Internal Security Act (ISA) law in 2011.
Pairin said that in contrast, under former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, any attempt to talk about the MA63 was considered sensitive and anti-federal.
“Many Sabahans were afraid to discuss the issue openly because they could be arrested under the ISA.
“Even (acting president) Maximus Ongkili was one of Mahathir’s ISA victims,” Pairin said referring to his party successor, to whom he handed the reins of the party in January this year.
“Not once did Mahathir take any action on the MA63 when he was prime minister. Why has he suddenly now promised to review the issue? Why not when he was in power?
“I don’t think he is honest. In other words, he is insincere and won’t do it,” he said of the Pakatan Harapan chairman.
On the contrary, Pairin said he believed Najib had no intention to disregard Sabah’s rights.
“Instead of clamping down on the MA63 movement, Najib has been consistent in showing his concern and intention to handle the issue amiably through discussions,” he said.
Sabahans in federal agencies
Meanwhile, Pairin voiced his dissatisfaction with the number of Sabahans holding senior positions in federal departments and agencies.
“The representation of Sabahans in federal statutory bodies is less than 35%. The percentage is even lower when it comes to senior positions with only 30% of federal officers here being Sabahans,” he said.
He said he believed the time had come for more Sabahans to be appointed and absorbed into the administration.
He said he hoped more Sabahan officers, including Bumiputera minorities, were appointed to head federal departments, statutory bodies, government-linked companies (GLC) and local universities in Sabah or in the peninsula.