page_title: Proposed 2019 amendment to the Constitution of Malaysia
section_title: Second reading
hierarchical_section_title: Proposed 2019 amendment to the Constitution of Malaysia / Dewan Rakyat debate / Second reading
caption_attribution_description: English: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Federation of Malaya, North Borneo, Sarawak and Singapore: Agreement relating to Malaysia (with annexes, including the Constitutions of the States of Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore, the Malaysia Immigration Bill and the Agreement between the Governments of the Federation of Malaya and Singapore on common market and financial arrangements), signed at London on 9 July 1963; Agreement amending the above-mentioned Agreement, signed at Singapore on 28 August 1963.
context_page_description: On 4 April 2019, a bill proposing an amendment to the Constitution of Malaysia was tabled in the Dewan Rakyat of the Parliament of Malaysia. The bill proposes to amend Article 1 so as to restore the status of the two East Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak according to the original content of Malaysia Agreement that was signed in 1963.
  Despite six hours of debate in the Parliament during the second reading of the bill on 9 April, only 138 MPs supported the bill, 10 votes short of the two-thirds majority of the chamber, 148 votes, required for amendments to the Constitution. The remaining 59 votes were abstentions, all of which are from opposition parties.
context_section_description: On 8 April, Minister Liew stated that the wording of the bill would follow the 1963 version of Article 1(2) of the Constitution. The minister also stated that he received no opposition from the Prime Minister or the federal Attorney General. However, despite these changes, Fadillah Yusof, Chief Whip of the Sarawak Parties Coalition (GPS), stood firm on a request that the bill be temporarily withdrawn, or referred to a select committee, for further discussion.
  In a speech on 9 April, during the second reading of the bill, Prime Minister Mahathir stated that the amendment was a "starting point and [this] is an appropriate time for the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government to take the first step in realising the needs of the people in Sabah and Sarawak in line with the Malaysia Agreement 1963". People's Justice Party (PKR) President Anwar Ibrahim concurred saying the matter had undergone extensive debate and that the concerns of the people of Sabah and Sarawak were being addressed by the PH administration. He also stated that restoration of the two states was a meaningful step being undertaken by the PH government, compared to the half century of inaction by the previous Barisan Nasional government, and should not be opposed.
  In response to a question from Ketereh MP Tan Sri Annuar Musa concerning the necessity of having a select committee review the bill, Sabah Chief Minister Shafie Apdal agreed that such a review was unnecessary and would only delay other amendments that would restore other aspects of the 1963 agreement. He also refuted claims that passing of the bill would result in an "erosion of nationhood among the people of Sabah and Sarawak".
caption: The bill redefinition as announced by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department for Legal Affairs, Liew Vui Keong on 8 April 2019 for the amendment as according to the original 1963 agreement with the exclusion of Singapore which have leaving the federation in 1965.[73]
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