Commentary by Simon Peter
Many Sarawakians would have preferred to see our head of government be renamed Prime Minister, instead of Premier, to replace the current term Chief Minister as sought by the amendment to the State Constitution to be tabled in the current sitting of the State Assembly.
Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) government and Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg are very much aware of what the people are really wishing for.
Abang Johari is also equally aware that calling himself as the prime minister of Sarawak may have dire consequences and may lead to unwanted friction with the federal government.
It can also be deemed as unconstitutional as Malaysia can only have one prime minister under the Federal Constitution.
Abang Johari and other GPS top leaders also know to what extent they can go to, without causing suspicion among the federal government.
Perhaps, they must have carefully studied, conducted thorough research and consulted constitutional law experts before coming up with the term premier in place of the chief minister for the head of Sarawak government.
We can see that the GPS government is looking at the Australian system of government set-up as a model. The head of the executive branch of the Australian state governments is referred to as premier, not as prime minister.
Only the head of the federal government of Australia is positioned as the prime minister. Such a set-up has worked well for Australia.
It is also reminded that after the amendment to Article 1(2) of the Federal Constitution, Sarawak, Sabah and Malaya are equal partners under a bigger umbrella called the Federation of Malaysia.
It is appropriate that the head of the executive branch of the Sarawak government be renamed premier while the country’s head of government is called prime minister.
Perhaps, Sabah can follow Sarawak as it always did with other important matters in the past.
Renaming the name of the head of government from the chief minister to the premier is a step in the right direction.
It is in keeping up with the recent amendment to Article 1(2) of the Federal Constitution that had restored the status of Sarawak and Sabah to their original positions before the Article was amended in 1976.
The 1976 amendment downgraded the status of Sarawak and Sabah as among the states in Malaysia.
Some may argue that the name-change is another right being returned to Sarawak from the federal government since the late Tan Sri Adenan Satem and his successor Abang Johari became the chief minister since 2014.
In the years to come, perhaps, within the five-year term of the GPS state government, more rights will be returned to Sarawak from the federal government.
GPS, in its state election manifesto, had pledged to reclaim more state’s rights that have been eroded or surrendered, either knowingly or unknowingly, over the years since 1963.
Therefore, it will not be surprising for Sarawakians if more rights are taken back in the near future.
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