Maiden speech by Piasau State Assembly member Datuk
Sebastian Ting, who is also SUPP secretary general, on June 10 2016.
Chief Minister 53 Decisions and Policies
I would also like to congratulate our Chief Minister, for
the landslide victory for Sarawak Barisan Nasional at the just concluded
Sarawak Election winning 72 seats out of 82 seats. In percentage term it is
87.8% a very strong convincing and strong mandate from the people of Sarawak.
I would also like to congratulate all my fellow Yang
Berhormat from Barisan Nasional comrades for winning their respective seats and
I would also further wish to extend my personal congratulations to the ten YBS
from the DAP and PKR.
SUPP went through its toughest and most challenging
Sarawak election last month. SUPP was allocated 13 seats to contest, instead of
the traditional 19 seats plus 2 new seats out of the 11 new seats.
We faced tough and real challenges from all angles. We
were successful in winning seven seats out of 13 seats contested. Of the 7
seats, we won back 4 seats from DAP (Batu Kawah, Maradong, Repok and Piasau).
We won by bigger majority in the two seats we retained
(Senadin and Sri Aman). We also won the new seat of Batu Kitang. We thank all
for giving SUPP a chance to serve you. We will value and treasure this chance.
With such strong support, trust and confidence from the
people and we take the advice of our TYT we must not be seen only to work hard
but must indeed work hard. We must go to the ground, be with people, listen to
people and plan together with them on how to make our Beautiful Sarawak an even
better place to stay and live, in peace and harmony and in our journey to
safeguard Sarawak.
Tuan Speaker, I would like to congratulate, record our
greatest appreciations to our Yang Amat Berhormat Chief Minister, for his 53
decisions and policies for implementations since he became the Chief Minister
of Sarawak on the 1st March 2014 for the benefits of our people Sarawak.
The policies have benefited tremendously and the people
will continue to enjoy the benefit. All the 53 decisions and policies are
important but I may not have time to state all of them. I will only mention two
namely, the funds of RM3 million for 2014, RM4 million for 2015, RM5 million
for 2016 and a promised sum of RM6 million to the 14 Chinese Middle Independent
Schools in Sarawak and the recognition of United Examination Certificate (UEC).
These two top the list of the 53 decisions and policy as
to be very near to the Chinese community. In addition, I acknowledge the
separate approvals and allocations of funds to SJK(c) Chung Hua. Thank you
Chief Minister.
Educations is very important not only to the Chinese but
to everybody in this august House because we want the best for our children. In
this I am in total agreement with the Honourable Member for Maradong and
Honourable Member of Tasek Biru.
Sarawak Autonomy
Throughout the Sarawak Election, Barisan Nasional
candidates, including our Chief Minister, used the main theme was centred on
Sarawak Autonomy.
In October 2015, at the SUPP Annual Delegates Conference,
SUPP launched our theme for the Sarawak election PRN11 as “Safeguard Sarawak”.
As Sarawakians we must know our rights, once we know our rights, we must
promote awareness to as many Sarawakians as possible.
Next, we must protect our rights and ultimately we must
get back those rights. What is ours is ours. In order to do so, we must seek
the involvement of our people and many of them are not aware of the four
important documents that contained all our rights and entitlements at the time
of formation of Malaysia in 1963 namely the four documents.
(a) The Cobbold Commission
(b) The Inter Governmental Committee Report
(c) The Malaysia Agreement 1963
(d) The Malaysia Act 1963 (Chapter 35)
Therefore we must actively and aggressively promote
awareness to the public on the relevant provisions of the four important
documents.
Many fellow Malaysians, Sarawakians too do not know the
existence of these four documents. Our history books in our education system
have omitted and continue to omit these four documents.
Consequently, the true history of Sarawak and the
formation of Malaysia have never made known to our people and Malaysian as a
whole.
It is therefore a fair statement to say that our history
true story of Sarawak and formation of Malaysia have been put away in the
backdoor and have never been seriously look into.
SUPP has played its part where so far had organized 10
political forums the first of which was on the 22 November 2015. The
participants were excited, interactive and asked relevant and challenging
questions. In total, we had reached 1500 adults. We consider this very
encouraging.
SUPP will continue to organize this political forum with
only one objective in mind, that is to promote public awareness of the above
mentioned four documents.
With the landslide victory and the strong mandate given
to our Yang Amat Berhormat Chief Minister and Barisan Nasional candidates, our
people, our fellow Sarawakians are eagerly waiting and watching and indeed are
expecting this Barisan Nasional Government to fight for and claim back our
rights and entitlements as contained in the Malaysia Agreement and the other
three documents.
I would like to congratulate Yang Amat Berhormat Chief
Minister for successfully obtaining 13 administrative powers in Federal
Department and transferring back to our Sarawak Government.
There will be more negotiations to be carried out in
stage 2 and stage 3 to reclaim more autonomous powers for our State.
Therefore, I urge our State Government to employ more
pragmatic means to preserve some of the autonomous powers currently in our
hands.
Hudud Bill
Tuan Speaker, Hudud Bill. Honourable Members of this
august House know that Sarawak did not join Malaysia in 1963.
We, that is Sarawak, Sabah, Federated States of Malaya
and Singapore formed Malaysia on 16 September 1963. Singapore was separated in
1965. After 53 years Malaysia has come to a cross as one of the fundamental
principles agreed to during the formation is now being challenged that Malaysia
is a secular State.
The foundation of Malaysia is now put to test. The
Private Bill introduced by the President of PAS, Marang MP Datuk Seri Hadi
Awang‟s Private Member‟s Bill to enhance the Syariah Courts‟ criminal jurisdiction
will effectively make Malaysia an Islamic State.
Hudud Law may and will steadily replace the current
criminal system based on the rule of law and the Criminal Code used by all
countries that run along democratic principles.
If the Hudud Law is passed by Parliament, it is likely be
the end of Malaysia as a secular state. Our founding leaders in Sarawak did not
and would never have agreed to the formation of Malaysia had it known fifty
years down the line, Malaysia will become an Islamic State.
Articles 3 of the Constitution of Federation of Malaya
refers to Religion. Article 3 (1) provide “Islam is the religion of the
Federation; but other religions may be practiced in peace and harmony in any
part of the Federation”.
According to the report of the Inter-Governmental
Committee Report 1962 (IGC Report), the task of the Committee was to work out
the future constitutional arrangements to safeguard certain special interests
for Sarawak and North Borneo that is Sabah.
From the IGC Report, it is very clear to note that
besides the establishment of the Federation of Malaysia, the first and foremost
matter concerned the Committee was the religious freedom.
The Committee recommended that there shall be a guarantee
for religious freedom when the Federation of Malaysia was established.
In Chapter 3 paragraph 15 (1) of the IGC Report which
dealt with Article 3 (Religion), it states; “Article 3 (3) should be left
unamended so as not to confer on the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong the position of Head
of the Muslim religion in the Borneo States.”
Paragraph 15 (2)
states; The guarantee for religious freedom contained in Article 11 should be
retained. Malaysia has to remain a secular state as agreed.
Sarawak Tuan Speaker, cannot allow a state and the
Federation of Malaysia to dictate the type of country Malaysia should be.
22nd July Sarawak Day
Tuan Speaker, I touch on 22nd July. Sarawak Day, which is
also part of Sarawak autonomy. I would like to congratulate our Chief Minister
in his efforts to declare July the 22nd as Sarawak Day, so as to promote
Sarawak people‟s awareness towards our own State‟s sovereignty, our own State‟s
history as well as our fore father‟s contributions to make Sarawak a land for
multi races, multi ethnic, multi religions and multi cultures.
Tuan Speaker, I still remember last year 19th of July, my
Party SUPP responded to statewide celebration of July 22nd organized by Sarawak
for Sarawakians (S4S). SUPP in Sibu and Miri sent their members to participate
in S4S parade.
We proudly wore a self-designed yellow t-shirt with the
writing “I am Sarawakian” for the parade. Our comrade Michael Tiang from Sibu
even made a public stand in the press urging our State Government to declare
July 22nd as Hari Sarawak.
Almost a year has passed, this year on the 26th of May,
our YAB Chief Minister announced that July 22nd would be officially declared
and cited in the Sarawak Government Gezatte to be known as Sarawak Independence
Day and it‟s slightly a public holiday indeed it will a public holiday.
Tuan Speaker, I believe the official declaration of
Sarawak Independence Day is as significant as the Federal Government‟s official
declaration of Malaysia Day in 2010.
The history of Sarawak and the formation of Malaysia
under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), The Malaysia Act 1963 (Chapter 35),
The Cobbold Commission and the Inter Governmental Committee Report are such
important parts of our history that every generation should or must be taught
to remember and to recognize and to learn, particularly that there would not be
a country called Malaysia, if there is no Sarawak.
I am indeed very
proud to witness recently that our people in Sarawak are so eager to want to
know more about Sarawak‟s history, the contents of MA63 and the autonomy that we
have according to MA63. Tuan Speaker, Religious Freedom.
SUPP‟s stern belief in religious freedom about leads to
my proposal to our State Government that as it is our Sarawak‟s founding
principles that man shall have freedom to practice any faith he chooses to
profess, our State Government shall take further pragmatic steps in assuring
such freedom is upheld and protected.
In the recent case of a 41–years old Bidayuh Sarawakian,
Rooney Anak Redit who was made a Muslim when he was a minor, but as an adult
now he sought to have the freedom to choose the religion he wanted to profess.
Nevertheless, the National Registration Department
refused to recognize his Christianity faith. However, the Kuching High Court
Judge Datuk Yew Jen Kie held that as an adult Rooney would be allowed to
exercise his constitutional right to choose which religion he wished to
profess.
While I praise the impartial and bold decision made by
her honourable judge in Rooney‟s case to upload the Federal Constitution, I
also felt very concerned at the same time that Rooney had to go through all
those courts proceedings for his choice of religion and that to be recognized
by the National Registration Department.
Although the National Registration Department intended to
appeal against the High Court‟s decision, it was a great relief and indeed
grateful to know that our Chief Minister eventually managed to obtain assurance
from the Prime Minister that the appeal would be withdrawn. The appeal was
eventually withdrawn.
But instead, Tuan Speaker, I would like to suggest that a
new ministry of religious affairs be established by our State:
(a) To make laws
and policies to protect and uphold the religious freedom in Sarawak;
(b) To set up proper channel to assist our Sarawak
residents in national registration process, particularly when they are they
have chosen to convert to other religions of their choice;
(c) To encourage understanding and unity among different
religions, and to promote harmony; and (d) To oversee the welfare of different
religious bodies, particularly the registration of religious bodies so that
these religious bodies/institutions are entitled to enjoy the State resources
and support.
It appears that it is common challenge among the
Christian community to register a local church as an official missionary
society recognized by the State Government under the Missionary Societies
Ordinance.
Many of the local churches in Sarawak have been trying to
register themselves under the Registrar of Societies or Registrar of Companies,
which both are not the correct institutions to register a religious body.
Therefore, it is my view that as Christians in Sarawak
make up over 40% of our population, their said grievances should be favourably
looked into by our State Government.
That being said, I am given to understand that our
Sarawak Government had recently approved few such applications and they are now
registered under the Missionary Societies Ordinance.
I understand that they are grateful. In conclusion in
this matter Tuan Speaker, I believe in the spirit of preserving our religious
freedom, the State Government should step forward to form a new ministry to
assist our Sarawakian local churches and other religious bodies to be
registered and to be recognized by the State so that they are entitled to
received the support of the State resources.
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