Sabah RCI identifies 48 witnesses

By Michael Kaung of Free Malaysia Today

| November 1, 2012

           

Irrespective of whether or not the elections are called, the RCI on Sabah's population burst will begin in January 2013.

 

KOTA KINABALU: The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Sabah’s over three decade old illegal immigrant controversy will start public hearings next year.

With the 13th general election due anytime now and some expecting parliament to be dissolved this month, the five-man panel headed by former chief judge of Borneo Steve Shim Lip Kiong announced Jan 14 as D-Day for Sabahans to hear evidence of what many claim is a massive immigration system fraud.

Shim said the panel had so far identified 48 witnesses to be called for the public hearing which will be held at the Kota Kinabalu High Court.

“We met today to finalise the list of witnesses and (look at) their relevance in our inquiry,” he told reporters after the panel met for their first meeting since their appointment on Sept 21.

Shim disclosed that since their appointment, they had set up an investigative team to identify witnesses for the inquiry into the illegal immigrant problem.

He said the investigative team had done a good job identifying witnesses who will give evidence at the public hearing.

He declined to reveal the witness list but urged “anyone who can give us relevant information” to “come forward to testify.”

Shim also rejected criticism that the RCI panel was dragging its feet on the issue.

“No delay … in fact our team of investigators have covered a substantial part in identifying witnesses.”

Six months target
On the limited time given to complete the inquiry, he said they were not worried as there were provisions for them to request an extension.

“Barring any complications, we hope to complete it within six months. Hopefully, we will be able to solve the problem (of illegal immigrants in the state),” he said

The RCI’s terms of reference empower the panel to determine the number of immigrants in Sabah that have been given Malaysian citizenship and if so whether the issuance of citizenship documents was legal.

The terms of reference stipulate that the panel can investigate the legality of the issuance of citizenship to immigrants in Sabah, verify if they are indeed holding blue identity cards or temporary identification receipts or citizenship documents had been illegally registered into the electoral rolls.

The panel can also investigate the reasons for the abnormal increase in Sabah’s population.

The other members of the panel are former Universiti Malaysia Sabah vice chancellor Kamaruzaman Ampon, former Sabah deputy chief minister and state attorney general Herman Luping, for state secretary KY Mustafa and Malaysian Crime Prevention Foundation president Henry Chin.

The secretary of the panel is Saripuddin Kasim, who is also Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry secretary general.

 

My Say:

 

Finally, the RCI will begin to sit and all is now waiting for the result of their inquiry in June or July.

Malaysia Day - Sept 16

In conjunction with Malaysia Day on Sept 16, I like to reproduce here extracts on the formation of Malaysia on Sept 16, 1963 from a book entitled `The Indigenous Ethnic Communities of Sabah - The Kadazandusun' by Tan Sri Herman J Luping which was launched in Kota Kinabalu on Aug 8, 2009 by Federal Information, Communication and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Utama Dr Rais Yatim.

Luping, a former Sabah Deputy Minister and also ex-State Attorney General, wrote on Chapter One of the 10 chapters book about a brief history of Sabah and the formation of a new federation 46 years ago called Malaysia.

From Page 9 of the 226- page-book, the veteran politician wrote that when Tunku Abdul Rahman proposed the formation of Malaysia in 1961, there was no political party in Sabah.

Donald Stephens (later to be known Tun Haji Mohd Fuad Stephens) formed United Kadazan National Organisation (UNKO) which was later renamed United Pasok Kadazan National Organisation (UPKO) for the Kadazans, Datu Mustapha Datu Harun (Tun Datu Haji Mustapha Datu Harun) established United Sabah Nasional Organisation (USNO) for the Muslims and Khoo Siak Siew (Datuk Khoo Siak Siew) formed Sabah Chinese Association (SCA) for the Chinese.

Of the four leaders, only Mustapha accepted Tunku's proposal outright. Mohd Fuad, and another Kadazan leader OKK Datuk G S Sundang and Khoo rejected the plan. In fact, Fuad joined forces with Azahari of Brunei and Ong Kee Hui of Sarawak to oppose the plan for Sabah, Sarawak, Singapore and the Federation of Malaya to merge to form a new nation - Malaysia.

These opposing leaders sent a telegram to the Secretary General of the United Nations in New York objecting strongly to the plan.

Mohd Fuad also wrote an opern letter to the Tunku and published it in the North Borneo News and Sabah Times on July 7, 1961 in which he wrote: `

"If we have been asked to join Malaysia at the same time Malaya achieved independence and Britain made it possible for us, the story would have been a different one. Now that Merdeka has been Malaya's for some year,s and we are still struggling towards it. Malaya's proposal that we join as the 12th, 13th and 14th States savours of imperialism, of a drive to turn us into Malayan colonies - To join Malaya, while we are still colonies, only means we cease to be British colonies and become Malayan colonies - the implication is to hand (ourselves) over to your control..."

Sundang, who is from the Interior (Keningau), was even more emphatic in his objection to the Malaysia plan. He said it would be a `big fish swallowing a small fish' and Sabah should gain independence first before joining in, so that Sabah could join as equal partners.

Khoo and other Chinese leaders wanted British to continue governing Sabah until such time as the country was ready for independence.

Luping further wrote that after careful consideration, Mohd Fuad decided to look at the Plan from a bigger window and subsequently accepted the Plan as workable. Lee Kwan Yew of Singapore was persuasive to make Mohd Fuad to change his mind.

Lee had been agitating for the Island City to join with Malaya and saw the opportunity to press for his advantage if Sabah and Sarawak also joined the new proposed Federation of Malaysia.

Mohd Fuad aso met the Tunku in Kuala Lumpur and after an hour's talk, he was more than convinced that the Malaysia proposal was feasible and would benefit the people of Sabah, particularly the indigenous communites.

Mohd Fuad then formed the Malaysia Solidaritry Consultative Committee to ascertain the benefits of the proposed federations for the people of Sabah and Sarawak. The committee was based in Kota Kinabalu then Jesselton.

The committe held meeting in Kota Kinablau, Kuching, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore and subsequently published a report in which Mohd Fuad, for Sabah, agreed to join Malaysia in principle, subject to various safeguards for the Borneo territories. He aksed for the guarantee of Borneon autonomy in the new federation.

The underlying reasons for Mohd Fuad's change of heart was that he saw the definitive indigenous communities as the beneficiaries of the advantages to be gain when Sabah joined Malaysia.

Sabah and Sarawak leaders also provided terms and conditions for the two States to join Malaysia. Sabah has its 20 Points Safeguards while Sarawak produced its Eighteen Points Safeguard.

While the country celebrates its 52nd Merdeka on Aug 31, 2009, Sabah and Sarawak will be celebrating the 46th Malaysia Day on Sept 16, 2009 which is also the official birthday celebrations of the Yang di-Pertua Negeri.

Note: You will be able to get a copy of this book by forwarding request to Ms Beth Sikayun of Kota Kinabalu, Sabah at Fax No: 088 423 677.

New book on Kadazandusun

Indigenous Ethnic Communities of Sabah
THE KADAZANDUSUN

A book that tells us about the Kadazandusun, Malaysia's major indigenous community in Sabah, whose culture and social fabric go beyond our present mundane understanding was launched in a traditional ceremony in Kota Kinabalu yesterday.

I was one of the hundreds of invited guests to this ceremony graced by Federal Information, Communication and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Utama Dr Rais Yatim.

The 226-pages book authored by Tan Sri Datuk Seri Panglima Dr Herman J Luping comprising of 10 chapters that tells the folds and chapters of life itself. This book is about the Kadazandusun written not to show the differences amongst the diverse ethnic indigenous communities in Sabah but rather to show unity and harmony amongst them.

A senior aide of Luping, Elizabeth Sikayun said this book was not for sale. It is published by the Ministry of Information, Communication and Culture Malaysia.

Luping, a Kadazan Tangaah from Penampang, was former Sabah Deputy Chief Minister and ex-State Attorney General. He holds a Master's degree in Political Science from Victoria University, Wellington, New Zealand and a PhD from the same university.

He is also a Barrister-at-Law from the Inner Temple, Inns of Courts, London. Among the other books that he had authored is Sabah Delima, a historical account of the development of politics in Sabah.

He is married to Puan Sri Datin Seri Margaret Tutin and they had three daughters and three grand-daughters.