KUCHING: Sarawak’s pursuit of greater autonomy for the state government should not be construed as a challenge to the federal administration’s authority, said Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem.
He said the state government was only claiming its rights as enshrined in the Federal Constitution and Malaysia Agreement, which was signed in 1963. “We are asking only for our rights as stipulated in the Federal Constitution.
“Some of these aspects (autonomy) have been forgotten in the past.
“For instance, the bureaucrats we are dealing with in Kuala Lumpur were not even born or were still children in 1963 (when Malaysia was formed),” said Adenan in an exclusive interview with the New Straits Times Press (NSTP) at his office in Wisma Bapa Malaysia, Petra Jaya, on Thursday.
The NSTP group was led by Berita Harian group editor Datuk Mahfar Ali. Adenan said talks on the devolution of powers with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak were conducted with reference to the Malaysia Agreement, Inter-Governmental Committee Report, and Cobbold Commission report and recommendations.
“We look at the Malaysia Agreement as a treaty among equals.” Last month, he announced that Sarawak had been granted administrative authority over 13 matters in the first stage of ongoing negotiations pertaining to state autonomy.
The agreement was reached in a meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office in Putrajaya on Jan 20.
Adenan praised Najib and the Federal Government for responding positively to Sarawak’s requests.
“The prime minister and Federal Government have been responsive to the negotiations on the devolution of powers to Sarawak. “To date, the outcome of the talks has been positive.
“I believe that the prime minister is paying particular attention to Sarawak.”
The second phase of the negotiations will focus on the encroachment of powers and non-compliance by federal authorities; residual matters pertaining to tourism; preservation of heritage; affairs concerning sports; and the environment.
The final stage of the talks will focus on finance; the state’s oil and gas royalty request; validity of the Territorial Waters Act; and Petrol-eum Development Act.
During the hour-long long interview, Adenan, who is also Sarawak Barisan Nasional chairman, spoke on preparations for the upcoming state election, which entails a solution to accommodate all component and breakaway parties under the state BN with regards to seat allocation.-NST
