20 Points are conditions for formation of Malaysia – Jeffrey

KOTA KINABALU: It is important to understand that the 20 Points were minimum conditions for Sabah to agree to be part of Malaysia, according to STAR Sabah chief Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan.
“And, as pointed out by the former State Archives Director, it was a memorandum of conditions,” he said in a statement yesterday.
The 20 Points, being a list of conditions, submitted by the leaders of the five Sabah political parties (UNKO, USNO, Pasok, DP, UP) were therefore an important milestone in the creation of Malaysia, he said.
“Without these conditions being agreed and discussed one can conclude that there would have been no Malaysia. It is that important,” he said.
“Therefore, people, including politicians and the former State Archives Director Datuk Datu Tigabelas should not be quick and shallow to dismiss the 20 Points Memorandum merely at its face value,” he said, adding that they represented the desires and concerns of the British, the North Borneo and Malaya.
The “weird” conditions referred to by Datu Tigabelas were actually the results of earlier discussions by all parties (British, Malaya and North Borneo) that led to the final 20 Points Memorandum document, he said.
Jeffrey said the 20 Points were not the only important valid documents in the formation of Malaysia.
He said Article 14 of the Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) Report also states: “14. In certain aspects the Committee agreed that the requirements of the Borneo States could appropriately be met by undertakings or assurances to be given by the Government of the Federation of Malaya rather than by Constitutional provisions and these are mentioned in the appropriate sections of this Report.
“The Committee agreed that the more important undertakings should be included in the formal agreement and envisaged that the other undertakings and assurances might be dealt with in exchanges of letters between the Governments concerned.”
The above quote from the IGC Report clearly validated not just the 20 Points Memorandum but even “letters of exchanges” as well as undertakings and assurances, he said.
Jeffrey contended that while various personalities have made significant opinions on the 20 Points, none have fully captured the essence and the overall importance of the 20 Points.
“It is important to view and understand the significance of the 20 Points by connecting it as part of a jig-saw-puzzle. Do not look at the 20-Points in isolation,” he said.

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