Sabah and Sarawak parliamentary seat representation under review

Malaysian leaders and officials are discussing the potential increase of parliamentary seats for Sabah and Sarawak to ensure their representation aligns with the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63). Former Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak emphasized that the core issue is not merely the number of additional seats, but ensuring that Sabah and Sarawak collectively hold one-third of the total parliamentary seats.

To facilitate this, a special committee under the MA63 Technical Committee is proposed to study the methods of increasing seats. Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri noted that any decision regarding the ratio of representation must involve high-level discussions between the Prime Minister and the leaders of Sabah and Sarawak to determine a suitable legal formula.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission (SPR) has clarified reports suggesting Sarawak's parliamentary seats would increase to 46, stating no such proposal has been made. The Commission confirmed it is currently conducting a review for the seventh Sarawak state constituency delimitation, which involves increasing state assembly seats from 82 to 99, but does not include increasing federal parliamentary seats.