UBF Leaders meet ex-SNAP president

KOTA KINABALU: United Borneo Front (UBF) leaders recently held an informal meeting with Datuk Amar James Wong, former SNAP president and ISA detainee, to discuss recent developments in UBF and SNAP party politics as well as the genesis of the Malaysia formation.
Prolific author and poet James Wong, now in his late 80s, has spent his life determined to tell the truth about the formation of the federation and his book entitled, "The Birth of Malaysia", contains the key documents leading up to the Malaysia Agreement in 1963, including the Malaysia proclamation by Tunku Abdul Rahman, the Cobbold Commission Report and the Inter¬-Governmental Committee Report in 1962.

Unwilling to comment on the forthcoming Sarawak elections and the future of the Taib regime, Wong discussed the UBF direction at length with UBF leader Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan and the issue of amalgamating various agendas between different racial groups in Borneo.

Dr Jeffrey, accompanied by Nilakrisna James and Zainal Ajamain, shared his ISA experience with Wong which Dr Jeffrey believes made them both ever determined to tell the story of Malaysia to the world.

"A former Malaysian Prime Minister told me that I should not teach the people what the people don't know. He probably felt that ignorance would be a guarantee to the continual leadership of the present regime.

"I decided to defy this and believe that knowledge would empower the greatest amongst us and pave the way for a fairer system that would reward those who rise through merit. James Wong and I have many things in common and he is one of the last of the true warriors," said Dr Jeffrey in his statement yesterday.

The UBF leaders would promote Wong's book, "The Birth of Malaysia", in their campaigns and
will suggest to the government to make it a compulsory textbook in all history courses in secondary, schools.

Dr Jeffrey added in his statement that courtesy calls to various leaders who were pertinent at the time of the formation is part of his overall agenda to form a greater understanding of the story of Malaysia as without a true recount of the history, the  federation of Malaysia would not have a clear identity in the world.

"Nilakrisna and I made a similar visit to former Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew about four years ago, together with our friend and renowned writer Raymond Tombung. Lee is a signatory of the Malaysia Agreement and was therefore a crucial part of the negotiation process at the time of the formation.

"The three of us enjoyed tea with Lee and reminisced on Lee's role in Borneo's history, the formation  of Malaysia, the legality of the Singapore exit in 1965 and more importantly the huge economic disparity between the four former partners to the federation  comprising Singapore, Malaya, North Borneo and Sarawak," said Jeffrey.

He added Lee knows how to answer a question by saying very little and, unlike Wong, would probably not add much more than what he has already written in his books, preferring to stick with his one version of events.

According to Jeffrey, when Nilakrisna expressed her disappointment at the level of poverty in Borneo vis-a-vis the immense development and wealth of Singapore and Malaya and asked Lee why as an educated lawyer and a more advanced statesman, he (Lee) did not advise the Borneo leaders on a more water-tight provision to secure their rights, equality and safeguards in the Malaysia agreement of 1963. Lee could only repeat that he felt "deep collateral guilt".

"Guilt, as far as we are concerned, would not reverse the situation, tell the truth, repair the damage or provide solutions to our problems.    
"I could only sense either pity or condescension from both Singapore and Malaya for the Borneo dilemma and realised very early on that we must not rely too much on the Federal Government for our development and that both Sabah and Sarawak must learn to be self-sufficient and self¬-reliant to generate our own wealth and reclaim what is rightfully ours," Dr Jeffrey said.