KOTA KINABALU: The Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) committee will look into finalising the details on giving partial autonomy for Sabah and Sarawak on education and health issues.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said the MA63 secretariat, which is chaired by Sabah Sarawak Affairs minister Datuk Armizan Ali, was waiting for the methods and terms to be presented by Sabah and Sarawak governments.
"Most of the planning related to education and health in Sabah and Sarawak is being discussed in the headquarters in Putrajaya which include the recruitment of officers.
"When openings and interview sessions are being conducted, most of the time when officers are offered, they refuse to be transferred or work in Sabah and Sarawak, thinking that both places are in the interior.
"Those positions are filled up but they do not work in Sabah and Sarawak," he said, adding that the system now often kept both states in the dark when Putrajaya made the planning on infrastructure development.
Fadillah, who was given full mandate by the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to also resolve the MA63 agreement yesterday, was speaking to reporters at a press conference at a hotel here.
Apart from the devolution power on administration, he also said that another straightforward issue to be pursued was the return of lands purchased by federal government and agencies meant for development purposes.
"Unfortunately after five years, those lands are not being developed and (are) abandoned.
"Therefore, we are in the midst of discussion, which in principle is agreed, that undeveloped ands will be returned to Sabah and Sarawak. Both states would pay back the compensation at the original rate they were bought.
"As for lands with partial development and later left behind, the compensation will be based on the construction and other costs spent on it," he said, adding the technical meeting was postponed due to pending confirmation from the Finance Ministry.
The Petra Jaya member of parliament also disclosed that another two matters to be pursued were the special allocations and the return of one-third seat in Dewan Rakyat for Sabah and Sarawak.
For the special allocations, he said there was a need to look into formulas to decide on the fund distribution while the seats required legal considerations from three regions and support from the lawmakers from peninsular Malaysia.
Present was Deputy Plantation and Commodities minister Datuk Siti Aminah Aching.