By Voon Lee Shan, President, Parti Bumi Kenyalang
KOTA KINABALU: For decades, Bornoe people of Sarawak and Sabah have been told to “wait a little longer” for the promises of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) to be fulfilled. Each new Prime Minister comes with new slogans, new committees, new deadlines – but our people are still waiting.
When Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim took office, he instructed his deputy, Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof and Datuk Armizan to deal with MA63 issues within a month at Cabinet level.
Yet, after all the headlines and fanfare, even the federal government admits that only part of the MA63 agenda has been settled, while many key issues remain stuck in negotiations with no clear end in sight.
The message to Sarawakians and Sabahans is very clear: “You can talk, but you cannot decide.”
PBK says: enough is enough.
MA63 was supposed to guarantee Sarawak and Sabah an equal place, not a begging bowl. Instead, it has become a permanent excuse for Putrajaya to drag its feet while our oil and gas, our taxes, and our young people continue to flow out of Sarawak and Sabah.
We are told to be patient while committees meet, dashboards are launched, and press conferences are held – but real power and real revenue still do not return to our land.
PBK therefore declares that MA63, as a living political bargain, is already dead. It may still exist on paper, but in the hearts of Sarawakians and Sabahans, it has lost all moral and political legitimacy.
An agreement that is honoured only in speeches, but broken in practice, is no longer relevant as the foundation of our future.
The honest way forward is not to patch up this broken arrangement, but to press the reset button. PBK calls for Sarawak, Sabah and Malaya to part first, then decide later:
First, recognise that the MA63 framework has failed and that the parties have the right to walk away from a bargain that has been breached.
Next, allow a clear grace period – a coolingoff period – where Sarawak and Sabah stand on their own feet and our people can freely debate and decide our own path.
Only after that, if the people so choose, should Sarawak a d Sabah consider any new relationship with Malaya – whether a new federation, a loose confederation, or a complete and permanent separation.
PBK’s position is simple: Borneo people must decide their own destiny. Not Kuala Lumpur, not Putrajaya, not any committee behind closed doors.
Our future should not be negotiated away in endless meetings; it should be determined by the will of the people of Sarawak and Sabah.
To every Sarawakian and Sabahan who feels that your land, your rights, and your future have been ignored: PBK stands with you.
If MA63 cannot deliver justice after more than 60 years, then Sarawak and Sabah must have the courage to move beyond MA63.
Only then can we build a future where our children are no longer told to “wait” – because they themselves will hold the power to decide.
