Malaysia to boost Sabah, Sarawak CIQ facilities as Indonesia builds capital next door
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Malaysia PM Anwar (left) and Sarawak Premier Abang Johari attending an event, during the prime minister's visit to the East Malaysian region on Friday.
PHOTO: BERNAMA
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KUCHING - Malaysia’s federal government will allocate additional funding of RM1 billion (S$308 million) to improve border security in Sabah and Sarawak in tandem with Indonesia’s relocation of its capital to Nusantara,
He said the Finance Ministry has given preliminary approval for the allocation, which will be used to upgrade the Customs, immigration and quarantine (CIQ) facilities and other infrastructure along Malaysia’s border with Indonesia.
“In my recent discussion with Indonesian President Joko Widodo, we spoke about Indonesia’s new capital, Nusantara, which is close to Sabah and Sarawak,” Datuk Seri Anwar told a press conference after chairing the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) Implementation Action Council meeting in Sarawak’s capital on Friday.
“We have decided to provide additional allocation to enhance border security as well as basic infrastructure such as roads, so that we don’t look too backward.”
Indonesia announced in 2019 a plan to move its capital from Jakarta to East Kalimantan province on Borneo island, with the new capital named Nusantara.
It expects to begin constructing US$2.7 billion (S$3.6 billion) of apartment projects in the second quarter of 2023 for thousands of civil servants, AFP has reported.
East Kalimantan shares a land border with Sarawak.
The meeting in Kuching was attended by Sarawak Premier Abang Johari Tun Openg, Sabah Chief Minister Hajiji Noor and other federal and state leaders.
The RM1 billion allocation is expected to be included in Malaysia’s 2023 Budget, which will be tabled in February.
Work is expected to start immediately on the proposed upgrades to the CIQ facilities and roads connecting Sabah and Sarawak to Nusantara.
Mr Anwar also said the federal government has agreed to increase the special grants to Sabah and Sarawak as part of the MA63 agreement, with the two East Malaysia territories administered as regions, not states.
For a start, he said, Sarawak would receive RM300 million in grants, up from RM16 million previously.
Sabah would get from RM26 million to RM260 million, pending further discussions.
The implementation council meeting followed remarks last week by Malaysia’s Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi.
In his policy speech at the Umno general assembly, he said that Sabah and Sarawak have now been accorded the status of “wilayah” (regions) instead of “negeri” (states) within Malaysia, based on the MA63.
Malaysia will now have 11 states, two regions and three federal territories (Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan). It previously had 13 states and the three federal territories.
Mr Anwar said in Kuching on Friday that any change to the designation of Sabah and Sarawak from states to regions must first be referred to the Malay rulers, who are titular heads in nine of the 11 peninsular Malaysia states.
He said the MA63 and the country’s federal Constitution state that the Federation of Malaysia, when it was formed in 1963, would comprise the regions of Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak.
“As this involves amending the Constitution, the views of the Malay rulers are important,” Mr Anwar told a news conference after chairing the council meeting.
THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
