“It sounds nice in name but what actual benefit does it bring?” he said. “If the present system works for Sabah, then why fix something that’s not broken?”
He told FMT he would support the name change only if it meant the gaining of political advantages and the fulfilment of state rights.
He noted that Sabah and Sarawak together did not have one-third representation in Parliament and said it would therefore be difficult to legislate the devolution of power to the two states.
The Sarawak state assembly passed a bill yesterday to allow the change of title from “chief minister” to “premier”.
The change came after the Federal Constitution was amended to re-establish Sarawak and Sabah as equal partners in the formation of Malaysia in 1963.
Federal law minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar previously said the change in title would not financially benefit the person holding the post.
Former deputy home minister Azis Jamman said Sarawak had every right to rename the chief minister’s title, but Sabah should not follow suit if it was only for the sake of changing the name.
“This is only a cosmetic change,” he said. “The more important matter is the content of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63). That is what we are fighting for and that is what Sabah and Sarawak are waiting for.”
Azis, who is the Warisan Youth chief, told FMT people in Sabah were still “screaming” about inequality, distribution of wealth and underdevelopment despite the status change from “state” to “territory”.
“What we want is all our state rights returned and what is owed paid back to us,” he said.
Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku vice-president Kenny Chua said the state government needed to deliberate on the matter thoroughly if it wanted to follow Sarawak.
“If it’s just a title change, it would be pointless,” he said.
However, Sri Tanjong assemblyman Justin Wong said Sabah should use the title of “premier” for the chief executive to reflect “the true and current status” of the territory.
“I urge the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah government to reclaim the powers deemed to be vested on the premier or head of the executive of a territory,” he said.
He called for a special assembly sitting to proclaim the restoration of Sabah’s equal status following the amendment to the Federal Constitution.
He said there should be no delay in reclaiming the state’s autonomy and its rights to prevent Sabah from being left too far behind Sarawak.