Sarawak will discuss with the Attorney General regarding the term ‘state’
Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg said considering Malaysia’s position as a member of the Commonwealth, the term used should also align with the legislation practiced in that organization.
“We also want to get feedback from the public on the trending terms that should be used, so we will adjust according to the law, especially in Commonwealth countries.
“In the Commonwealth countries, they use ‘provincial legislature’, for example, in Canada (a Commonwealth member) they say ‘provincial parliament’ as well… We (Sarawak) can’t use the term ‘territory’ because otherwise, we would be like the Federal Territories,” he said.
Abang Johari said this to reporters after attending an Aidilfitri open house event at the residence of Minister of Women, Family and Community Development Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri here today.
He said the state committee represented by Deputy Minister in the Sarawak Chief Minister’s Department (Law, Malaysia Agreement 1963 and State-Federal Relations) Datuk Sharifah Hasidah Sayeed Aman Ghazali would hold discussions with Ahmad Terrirudin regarding this matter.
Yesterday, Sarawak State Legislative Assembly Speaker Tan Sri Mohamad Asfia Awang Nassar said the Sarawak executive branch must decide whether to remove the word ‘state’ from the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly.
He said personally, he believed in line with the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), which recognizes Sarawak as a territory and not one of the 13 states, the word should be dropped.
