[ad_1]
PETALING JAYA: Former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad says that upholding and observing the 1963 Malaysia Agreement will allow the country to overcome any difficulties, paving the way for its development and progress.
He said that it is true that discontent can arise between members of a “great family”, but added that there must be a “point of convergence” so that the relationship does not break down.
“That is why we support requests for the 1963 Malaysia Agreement, known as MA63, to be fully endorsed and we accept that the peninsula, Sabah and Sarawak are three territories united as equal partners.
“I am confident that if we can observe and implement the same spirit and agreement (of MA63), we can overcome all the difficulties that lie ahead,” he said in a Malaysia Day greeting posted on his social media.
Relating the statement of the Federation of Malaysia by then-Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman, Mahathir said that his emotions were mixed with pride and anxiety.
“Pride, because Tanah Melayu will be with North Borneo, which later became known as Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore to form the great nation of Malaysia.
“But my heart was also pounding because the (Malaysian) formation had received fierce opposition from several neighboring countries,” he said, adding that he was 38 at the time.
Now, some 57 years later, the nation had been through a lot, including Singapore’s departure from the federation, he said.
“Singapore is gone, but the strength of the peninsula’s relationship with Sabah and Sarawak has grown even stronger and continues to build.”
