Rahezzal Shah Abdul Karim of UiTM Sabah said while the post of deputy prime minister was perceived as a “prestigious” one, in reality it would be limited to the portfolio they were given.

Traditionally, a deputy prime minister would oversee “important” ministries such as finance, home, and education, he said in response to promises made by Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Harapan (PH) to create additional deputy prime minister positions.

And while giving East Malaysians such a post would be a homage to the people of Sabah and Sarawak, in the current framework it would merely be symbolic, Rahezzal said.

“What Sabah and Sarawak yearn for is not political positions, but political will at the federal level to offer and promise innovative politics to resolve issues,” he said in a statement.

BN and PH had recently promised to create three and two posts of deputy prime minister respectively should they come to power after the 15th general election.

While BN said the three posts would be filled by a representative from the peninsula, Sabah and Sarawak, PH said the two posts would be reserved for a representative from the peninsula and either Sabah or Sarawak.

Rahezzal also said it was time for political parties to go beyond such symbolic gestures and promise impactful policies instead, including greater autonomy to the two Borneo states to manage their development funds.

Such policies should be prioritised by political parties, he said.

“But should these parties decide on offering political posts instead, the question is where does it end? Must a deputy prime minister be of a certain religion or ethnicity?”

Rahezzal added that the biggest question now was Perikatan Nasional’s response.

“Would they offer four posts?” he asked.