KUCHING: Sarawak will consult with Attorney-General Ahmad Terrirudin Salleh to determine the most appropriate term to replace the word “state” in “Sarawak state legislative assembly”, based on the Federal Constitution.
Premier Abang Johari Openg said considering Malaysia’s position as a member of the Commonwealth, the term used should also align with the legal practices of that organisation.
“We also want feedback from the public regarding the preferred terminology, so we will adjust it according to the laws, especially those practised in Commonwealth countries.
“In Commonwealth countries, they use terms like ‘provincial legislature’. In Canada, they refer to it as ‘provincial parliament’.
“We cannot use the term ‘territory’, otherwise, we would be mistaken as a federal territory,” he said.
Abang Johari was speaking to reporters after attending a Hari Raya Aidilfitri open house at the residence of women, family, and community development minister Nancy Shukri, here today.
He said the state committee, represented by deputy minister in the premier’s department (law, Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and state-federal relations), Sharifah Hasidah Sayeed Aman Ghazali will discuss the matter with Terrirudin.
Yesterday, Sarawak state legislative assembly speaker Asfia Awang Nassar proposed that the Sarawak executive branch must decide on a more suitable term to replace the word “state” in “Sarawak state legislative assembly”.
He believed that in line with the MA63, which recognises Sarawak as a territory and not one of the 13 states, the term should be dropped.
