BERSIH Sabah calls for RCI

BERSIH Sabah committee & reps of endorsing
organisations at Padang Merdeka 

BERSIH Sabah releases draft TOR for RCI, and calls for interim findings before polls

Kota Kinabalu: The call for the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into the grant of Malaysian citizenship to migrants and the presence of illegal immigrants in Sabah has been reiterated  by BERSIH Sabah, who has released a draft terms of reference (TOR) today.

BERSIH Sabah calls for the Commission to publicly produce its interim findings on or before 30 June 2012 or before the 13th General Elections.

“The call for RCI is urgent, particularly for interim findings to be made public before the 13th General Elections as to ensure that there are no phantom or illegal voters sabotaging a free and fair election for Sabah,” says Anne Lasimbang, Director of PACOS (Partners of Communities Organisations).

Wong Tack, Chairperson of Himpunan Hijau further echoes the call, "The RCI is the most pressing issue for Sabah. People from all sides of the divide have expressed their greatest desire to see the RCI implemented before GE13, for without it, election will not be fair and there will not be a future for Sabah."

"Unfortunately, the federal regime has not shown the slightest willingness to carry out the peoples' wishes. Therefore, it is time not to come on these people who merely provide lip service. The resolution of this issue now lies in the hands of the people."

Wong Tack further urges Sabahans to come out on April 28th at Padang Merdeka, "to demonstrate their strongest anger on this issue".

BERSIH Sabah also welcomes Parti Bersatu Sabah’s (PBS) recent call for RCI before the General Election polls, and invites all supporting parties for RCI to join the nation-wide sit-in on April 28th, 2pm onwards at the Padang Merdeka, Kota Kinabalu.

BERSIH Sabah is an independent non-partisan movement based in Sabah for free & fair elections. Local organisations, political parties and movements who have endorsed BERSIH Sabah include the indigenous NGO, PACOS (Partners of Communities Organisations), Himpunan Hijau, GAMIS (Gabungan Mahasiswa Islam Se-Malaysia), USDA (United Sabah Dusun Association), Tindak Malaysia, TABAH, PKR, STAR-Sabah, SAPP, DAP, PAS.

Proposed TOR for the RCI as follows ...


KOTA KINABALU: Bersih Sabah 3.0 calls for a ‘Royal Commission Inquiry into the Grant of Malaysian Citizenship to Aliens and the Presence of Illegal Immigrants in Sabah’.

On 21 August 2011, the Prime Minister of Malaysia Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Bin Tun Razak had asked us to be patient and not to doubt his sincerity for polls reforms. We are waiting, anxiously.

The increase in the population in Sabah has been extraordinary since 1970s. The Population Distribution and Basic Demographic Characteristics 2010 report published by the Department of Statistics, Malaysia reveals that more than 1 in 4 residents in Sabah is not a Malaysian citizen, or 27.7%.

The situation is much worse when one looks into the population of youths in Sabah. According to the Ministry of Youth and Sports, there are 1,046,869 Malaysian youths in Sabah in 2010, and 525,218 non-Malaysian youths residing in Malaysia. And this is just the number of detectable migrants.

These figures do not include aliens who have obtained their Malaysian citizenships through improper means.

Very real and substantiated allegations have been made against the National Registration Department on the improper issuance of Malaysian citizenships to aliens (in what is dubbed the 'Project IC'). Worse of all, there have been allegations of 'citizenship for votes' whereby foreign aliens have been promised citizenship of Malaysia in exchange for loyalty to UMNO. This is a chance for the Barisan Nasional government to clear its name.

The NRD has not released any figures as to how many foreign aliens have been granted citizenship since 1970. However, it is estimated that there are 737,000 of them are recipients of this 'Project IC' and 200,000 of them are eligible to vote.

This means the future of Malaysia may be decided by those who are essentially not Malaysians. We, the genuine Malaysians, should be the ones who shall decide the future of our beloved nation.

The socioeconomic impacts are just as severe. The burden on the State and Federal government is extremely heavy due to the utilisation of public amenities, schools and hospitals by these unaccounted aliens.

This is why Bersih Sabah 3.0 calls for a Royal Commission.

There is a unanimous and overwhelming support for the establishment of this Royal Commission. From all sides of political divide, be it UMNO, PBS, and UPKO from Barisan Nasional and PKR, DAP and PAS from Pakatan Rakyat, SAPP and STAR as well as NGOs and individuals, the entire Sabah echoes the same call.

In fact, the Parliamentary Select Committee on Electoral Reforms headed by Dr. Maximus Ongkili reiterated the same.

The situation is Sabah is dire and the Sabahans are unanimous - if our government is sincere about reforms, the Royal Commission must be established now.

By Andrew Ambrose, Mewakili Jawatankuasa Pepandu
Gabungan Pilihanraya Bersih dan Adil (BERSIH Sabah 3.0)