'Selective' native certificate probes questioned
Joe FernandezPublished: Nov 19, 2009 9:15 AM | Updated: Nov 19, 2009 10:23 AM
"How can they just investigate Jimmy Wong and not the others?" asked former Sabah PKR deputy state chief Daniel John Jambun.
This was a question echoed by other Sabah opposition reps over the special committee announced to investigate Wong, the Sri Tanjung state assemblyperson.
"How can they just investigate Jimmy Wong and not the others?" asked former Sabah PKR deputy state chief Daniel John Jambun. This was a question echoed by other Sabah opposition reps over the special committee announced to investigate Wong, the Sri Tanjung state assemblyperson.
The special committee will be headed by Abidin Madingkir, the permanent secretary of the state Local Government and Housing Ministry.
Wong is suspected of either holding a bogus native certificate or, if it is genuine, not entitled to one.
The opposition wants the scope of the investigation to be extended to others who may have obtained their native certificates by dubious means or be holding bogus native certificates.
They are also demanding that instant natives - illegal immigrants issued MyKads - be probed as well and dealt with as bogus natives.
Ex-Sabah PKR vice-president Jeffrey Gapari Kitingan commended the move by a state legislative member, Samsudin Yahya, to question Wong's native certificate validity.
Jeffrey, while seeing the special committee as a breakthrough, wants it to be re-designated by the governor as a Sabah commission of inquiry with specific and broad terms of reference.
Article 41 of the Sabah state constitution provides for the establishment of such a commission, he added. "A Royal Commission of Inquiry appointed by the Agong, a long-standing demand, would be the best solution. But the federal government has consistently rejected this option."
"A commission, whether state or federal, will have the power to subpoena people to come forward and testify. This will be a comprehensive once-and-for-all solution to the problem," said Jeffrey. "The special committee will not have such powers. Moreover, it can be selective in its prosecution and persecution and will act solely in the political interest of the ruling party."
The problem of ‘instant natives'
According to Jeffrey, problems involving instant natives can be seen from the current delineation of the electoral boundaries in the state.
"Of the 60 state seats, 35 are now regarded as Muslim-majority including Muslim KadazanDusunMuruts (KDM), 17 non Muslim KDMs and eight Chinese," said Jeffrey. This contrasted with the earlier delineation of 48 state seats where the Chinese had eight seats, the Muslims including Muslim KDMs had 20 seats and the non-Muslim KDMs had 20 seats.
Citing British government statistics, Jeffrey said that KDMs including Muslims formed 50 percent of the North Borneo (Sabah) population in 1960, with the Chinese comprising 30 percent with the rest at 20 percent. The same pattern was detected in the 1970 census undertaken by the Department of Statistics Malaysia, he added.
Jeffrey says the shift in numbers was caused by the influx of illegal immigrants from the Philippines and Indonesia who have ended up on the electoral rolls after being issued with MyKads. He estimates that a conservative 150,000 illegal immigrants were placed on the electoral rolls in marginal seats alone since 1970.
"Those illegal immigrants who have been issued with MyKads and are automatically considered natives sweep up all the opportunities in the urban areas because the genuine natives are all in the interior," said Jeffrey. "This contravenes the Federal Constitution which places the protection of the natives of Sabah and Sarawak under the Agong."
Jeffrey sees much conflict, political and otherwise, ahead if the problem of instant natives is not resolved and the rightful position of genuine natives under the law recognised.
Bogus natives within PKR
According to Jeffrey, Sabah PKR's recent woes are also linked to the instant native problem. He alleges that the instant natives, together with some local Muslim natives, are in one camp and supported by PKR's party headquarters in Kuala Lumpur. The natives, Jeffrey claims, are in another camp.
Given the current population scenario in Sabah, Jeffrey sees little purpose in setting up a special committee just to probe the authenticity of Jimmy Wong's native certificate.
"I am sure that the special committee will find that his native certificate is genuine," said Jeffrey. "The only question that will arise is whether he is entitled to it."
Meanwhile, KDCA (KadazanDusunMurut Cultural Association) executive secretary Benedict Topin announced that the association will be holding meetings in Tambunan, Penampang and Kota Marudu next week to discuss the issue of native certificates, instant natives and the electoral rolls.
The special committee will be headed by Abidin Madingkir, the permanent secretary of the state Local Government and Housing Ministry.
Wong is suspected of either holding a bogus native certificate or, if it is genuine, not entitled to one.
The opposition wants the scope of the investigation to be extended to others who may have obtained their native certificates by dubious means or be holding bogus native certificates.
They are also demanding that instant natives - illegal immigrants issued MyKads - be probed as well and dealt with as bogus natives.
Ex-Sabah PKR vice-president Jeffrey Gapari Kitingan commended the move by a state legislative member, Samsudin Yahya, to question Wong's native certificate validity.Jeffrey, while seeing the special committee as a breakthrough, wants it to be re-designated by the governor as a Sabah commission of inquiry with specific and broad terms of reference.
Article 41 of the Sabah state constitution provides for the establishment of such a commission, he added. "A Royal Commission of Inquiry appointed by the Agong, a long-standing demand, would be the best solution. But the federal government has consistently rejected this option."
"A commission, whether state or federal, will have the power to subpoena people to come forward and testify. This will be a comprehensive once-and-for-all solution to the problem," said Jeffrey. "The special committee will not have such powers. Moreover, it can be selective in its prosecution and persecution and will act solely in the political interest of the ruling party."
The problem of ‘instant natives'
According to Jeffrey, problems involving instant natives can be seen from the current delineation of the electoral boundaries in the state.
"Of the 60 state seats, 35 are now regarded as Muslim-majority including Muslim KadazanDusunMuruts (KDM), 17 non Muslim KDMs and eight Chinese," said Jeffrey. This contrasted with the earlier delineation of 48 state seats where the Chinese had eight seats, the Muslims including Muslim KDMs had 20 seats and the non-Muslim KDMs had 20 seats.
Citing British government statistics, Jeffrey said that KDMs including Muslims formed 50 percent of the North Borneo (Sabah) population in 1960, with the Chinese comprising 30 percent with the rest at 20 percent. The same pattern was detected in the 1970 census undertaken by the Department of Statistics Malaysia, he added.
Jeffrey says the shift in numbers was caused by the influx of illegal immigrants from the Philippines and Indonesia who have ended up on the electoral rolls after being issued with MyKads. He estimates that a conservative 150,000 illegal immigrants were placed on the electoral rolls in marginal seats alone since 1970.
"Those illegal immigrants who have been issued with MyKads and are automatically considered natives sweep up all the opportunities in the urban areas because the genuine natives are all in the interior," said Jeffrey. "This contravenes the Federal Constitution which places the protection of the natives of Sabah and Sarawak under the Agong."
Jeffrey sees much conflict, political and otherwise, ahead if the problem of instant natives is not resolved and the rightful position of genuine natives under the law recognised.
Bogus natives within PKR
According to Jeffrey, Sabah PKR's recent woes are also linked to the instant native problem. He alleges that the instant natives, together with some local Muslim natives, are in one camp and supported by PKR's party headquarters in Kuala Lumpur. The natives, Jeffrey claims, are in another camp.
Given the current population scenario in Sabah, Jeffrey sees little purpose in setting up a special committee just to probe the authenticity of Jimmy Wong's native certificate.
"I am sure that the special committee will find that his native certificate is genuine," said Jeffrey. "The only question that will arise is whether he is entitled to it."
Meanwhile, KDCA (KadazanDusunMurut Cultural Association) executive secretary Benedict Topin announced that the association will be holding meetings in Tambunan, Penampang and Kota Marudu next week to discuss the issue of native certificates, instant natives and the electoral rolls.
View Comments0