Lead council for the applicants Voon Lee Shan speaks to reporters after the proceeding. – Photo by Chimon Upon
KUCHING (May 25): The High Court here today struck out a suit filed by 12 people to nullify the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).
Judicial Commissioner Alexander Siew How Wai in his judgement today said the case was struck out as it was not sustainable and the plaintiffs had no locus standi to take up the suit to declare the MA63 as void.
“The Federal Constitution is the Supreme Law of this nation. Under the Federal Constitution, Sabah and Sarawak are part of the nation.
“Sabah and Sarawak cannot be not part of Malaysia without the necessary amendments to the Federal Constitution, the amendment of which would require the support of at least two-thirds majority of parliament and the consent of Sabah and Sarawak,” said Siew.
He added that the court could not disregard or rewrite the Federal Constitution, which this court would be guilty of doing, if it were to grant the declarations being sought in the suit.
“In the humble view of this court after due consideration, this suit is obviously unsustainable,” said Siew.
The court also ordered the Amended Writ and Statement of Claim be struck out and the instant action dismissed, with costs of RM10,000 for each of the applications (Sarawak and federal governments).
The suit was filed by the plaintiffs, led by Dorus Katam Juman, on the grounds that MA63 is null, void and invalid and that Sabah and Sarawak are entitled to exit from the Federation of Malaysia ‘for independence’.
The plaintiffs, through their counsel, Voon Lee Shan had submitted that MA63 was entered into by North Borneo (Sabah) and Sarawak through fraud and misrepresentation by the United Kingdom and Malayan governments without according the people the freedom to choose whether they wanted to join Malaysia through a referendum.
The 12 plaintiffs named the federal government, state government and the United Kingdom and Sarawak as respondents. The United Kingdom government, which has sovereign immunity, has not submitted to the jurisdiction of the Malaysian court.
The state government was represented by its state legal counsel Dato Sri JC Fong, Nicholas Bowie Buying, Khairul Kabir Abdul Kabir, while the federal government was represented by federal counsels Shamsul Bolhassan, Ahmad Hanir Hambaly, Liew Horng Bin, Athina Sim, and Mohd Zain Ibrahim.
The 12 plaintiffs — Dorus, Hugh Lawrence Zehnder, Nor Nyawai, Xavier Ginafah Sidop, Jemain Uji, Belayong Nyandang, Kalai Sibok, Yu Chin Lik, Chieng Kung Chiew, Changieng Mapang, Ahmad Awang Alim and Alim @ Giovanni Adlim Mideh — were represented by Voon, Alex Kong and Peli Aron.