Datuk Sebastian Ting
MIRI (March 3): Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) secretary-general Datuk Sebastian Ting said the change of title from Chief Minister to Premier is the first step for more things for Sarawak and its people.
In a press statement yesterday, he said only loyal and concerned true Sarawakians who have the best interest of Sarawak at heart can actually feel and appreciate the importance of this amendment.
“Especially with the Federal Constitution recently amended, Sarawak and Sabah cannot be the same as before and indeed cannot remain to be the same as before.
“What the Sarawak government did was absolutely correct both legally and constitutionally.
“And indeed, most, if not all, true Sarawakians were happy and proud, though surprised, that our Chief Minister then would initiate such a bold, wise and courageous move to introduce such far fetching amendments to the Constitution of Sarawak,” he said.
Ting, who is also Sarawak Deputy Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts, also congratulated Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg on being officially named as Premier of Sarawak
On March 1, the Constitution of the State of Sarawak (Amendment) Ordinance, 2022 was gazetted and officially came into force, whereby the Chief Minister of Sarawak be named as the Premier of Sarawak, the Deputy Chief Minister be renamed as the Deputy Premier and Assistant Minister be renamed as Deputy Minister.
“When the amendment Bill of Sarawak Constitution was passed on February 15, 2022, we could see most Sarawakians were feeling happy and proud of this historic day.
“It was a bold and courageous step forward for Sarawak and the people of Sarawak. The feedback we received from the ground was that our people were indeed very proud because the amendment put us different from the other states in Malaya,” he said.
He added that under the inspiring and visionary leadership of Premier Abang Johari, the GPS government has always put Sarawak as the first priority in line with Abang Johari’s slogan ‘Sarawak First’ to defend the rights and interests of the people of Sarawak at all times.
“Moreover, Premier Abang Johari himself has indeed kept his words by putting his words into actions to fight for the rights and the best interests of Sarawak and Sarawakians at large,” he said.
He added that the strong mandate in the recent Sarawak Election, given by the people of Sarawak to the Chief Minister then, would have encouraged Abang Johari to do much more for Sarawak and the people of Sarawak as a whole.
“With the change of being called the Premier of Sarawak, the people on the ground and we agree with them, that we are sending a strong and firm message to Federal, that we are different and that we must not be treated the same as one of the states in Malaya, like Johor, Selangor or Penang.
“Furthermore, with the change of name and style to Premier of Sarawak, it is very likely that our Premier will be held in higher esteem and recognition internationally by other foreign countries when our Premier makes official overseas trips. This may, indirectly or directly, act as a gentle whisper to the international community that Malaysia is a federation of three equal partners, which are the Federation of Malaya, Sarawak and Sabah,” he pointed out.
Since the Sarawak Constitution has been constitutionally and legally amended and passed on February 15, 2022, Ting said SUPP sincerely believed the Federal Government will forthwith recognise, respect and accept the use of Premier, Deputy Premier, Minister and Deputy Minister for Sarawak’s Executive Council.
“Perhaps we would like to take this opportunity to urge the Federal Minister of Education to have a relook or revisit our Malaysian history textbooks to recognise these new titles being used in Sarawak and more so, the correct history of the formation of Malaysia and the significance of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), the Cobbold Commission, the Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) Report and the Malaysia Act 1963 (Chapter 35).
“In the future, these new titles will become a symbol of Sarawak’s status. We hope all loyal and concerned true Sarawakians now and future generations will take pride that we are indeed different from other states in Malaya like Johor, Pahang and Penang. It is indeed our role and responsibility to create this awareness amongst our people, including our young Sarawakians of this important difference. This is a continuing journey,” he said.
After correcting the structure of the Malaysia Federation, Ting said Sarawakians were earnestly looking forward to Sarawak continuing to claim back more rights, more autonomy and special grants, as enshrined in the Malaysia Agreement 1963, Inter-Governmental Committee Report and the Federal Constitution.
“Sarawak must always come first,” he stressed.