Political analyst Associate Prof Awang Azman Awang Pawi, of Universiti Malaya, said MA63 is a sensitive issue as it touched on the special rights of the two nation states.
Dewan Rakyat speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia recently stirred controversy when he said that there was no reason to claim that Sabah and Sarawak had equal status with Malaya.
Instead, the Kota Belud native said all states were equal in Malaysia.
He also rubbished claims by certain quarters that Sabah’s MA63 rights were not fully executed and were mere political rhetoric to incite anger and hatred among the people of Sabah.
This led to criticisms by various quarters, with Sarawak Chief Minister Abang Johari Openg openly disagreeing with Pandikar.
“MA63 is a very important document because it is the basis of the territorial rights of Sabah, Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia,” Abang Johari was reported as saying recently.
He also said that Sarawak only cared about the PM’s views on the matter.
Azman said this is why East Malaysians and Sabah Umno delegates are eager to find out Najib’s stance, as both the PM and the Umno president, on the matter.
“Is Pandikar’s view a reflection of Putrajaya’s stance or merely a personal one?”
Azman went on to say that a recent survey he conducted revealed that 80% of Sabahans were unhappy with Pandikar’s statement.
On a related matter, Azman also expected delegates from Sabah to raise issues related to the cost of living.
This was especially so after Najib recently tweeted that gross income for Bumiputera households had increased to over RM6,000 last year from RM3,624 in 2009.
Azman said this statement did not reflect the situation in Sabah, especially in areas like Ranau and Semporna.
“People in Sabah want to know what ‘magic’ can be conjured to address this matter, especially before the election.”
Sabah delegates, Azman added, should also make more demands as the state is considered a “fixed deposit” and also because Sabah has the highest number of Umno members, second only to Johor.
Therefore, he said, Sabah Umno delegates should be more firm and aggressive in their demands as they have strength in numbers.
“By being bolder, it will help shore support for Sabah BN when they take on Parti Warisan Sabah,” he said, referring to the newly-formed opposition party.
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