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Better representation of Sabah, Sarawak needed in national affairs

It is gratifying to see Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Sabah and Sarawak Affairs) Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili leading a national delegation of investors to East Kalimantan, scouting for opportunities in and around the site for Indonesia's new capital city, Nusantara.

The visit was a Bornean affair, with Sarawak Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan and Sabah Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Dr Joachim Gunsalam also in the delegation.

This is entirely appropriate, given that Nusantara will mean Indonesia's centre of political and administrative gravity is shifting to Borneo.

It is also high time leaders from Sabah and Sarawak broke out of their accustomed insularity and pulled their weight in national affairs, too.

It is only in recent years that Sabah and Sarawak's representation in the federal cabinet is more or less commensurate with the two states' importance as political kingmakers nationally.

But, while being politically "top-heavy" in Putrajaya is no doubt meaningful, this must "trickle down" to all levels of the federal bureaucracy to make the ideal of "national integration" much more than just a catchphrase.

When two-thirds of Malaysia's landmass is separated by the sea from its peninsular "mainland" (in the sense that this is where most of the population and economic activities are centred), the idea of national integration has to be more a meeting of minds than the near-impossibility of physical integration.

Much remains to be done to make this a reality. There has been much lament in Sabah and Sarawak quarters about a general lack of representation from those from these two states in federal departments.

Even Wisma Putra seems to have a dearth of career diplomats from Sabah and Sarawak. The number of these at ambassadorial levels at any given time can usually be counted off on the fingers of a single hand!

It is noteworthy that former foreign minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman made a commendable effort to have more ambassadors from Borneo while he was in office, although these were more of political appointees.

There is no doubt that federal ministers from Sabah and Sarawak currently are also doing their bit to increase staffing from the two states in the ministries and departments under their direct charge.

But, there is a limit to what they can do at the political level, unlike at Wisma Putra with the expedience of politically appointed ambassadors.

Perhaps, what is really needed to make the federal administrative machinery look more truly Malaysian in all our diversity is to more seriously delve into the real causes of a relative lack of Sabah and Sarawak representation.

I rather doubt discrimination is the key reason. More plausible may be a lack of interest by qualified Sabahans and Sarawakians to uproot themselves from the comfort and familiarity their respective home state offers.

A reverse "hardship posting" psychology may be at play and if so, hardship incentives ought to be in the bag of remedial measures to address the matter.

There has been much current chatter in Sarawak as to why the newly appointed police commissioner is again not a local-born.

Recently, the chatter was about the relative "novelty" of a non-Sarawakian appointed as director of the Sarawak Health and Medical Services Department.

Such chatter is, undeniably, not healthy in national integration terms. But, it will likely persist unless real and concerted efforts are made to "normalise" Sabah and Sarawak representation in the administration of the country, among others.

Like everything else, the road towards national integration is two-way but the onus is probably more on federal political and administrative leaders to do more than pay lip service to effectively promote it.


The writer views developments in the nation, region and wider world from his vantage point in Kuching

The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times

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