“Following the decision, I held preliminary discussions with the Election Commission (EC) to seek its views and determine the next course of action,” he said during the question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat today.

He said this in response to a supplementary question from Datuk Willie Mongin (GPS-Puncak Borneo), who sought clarification on the mechanisms and legislative steps required to increase parliamentary seats for the two states.

Mustapha said discussions on the matter would continue at upcoming meetings of the MTPMA63 Technical Committee.

Meanwhile, he said 13 of the 26 matters under the MTPMA63 negotiation platform had been categorised as resolved, following decisions made at the first MTPMA63 meeting held on Sept 11.

“Of the 26 matters, three have been categorised as partially resolved, five remain unresolved, while another five have been brought before the Prime Minister, the Sarawak Premier and the Sabah Chief Minister for discussion,” he said.

Mustapha said the MA63-related matters brought before the highest level for discussion and decision-making included oil royalties and petroleum cash payments, stamp duties, the Territorial Sea Act 2012, and state rights over the continental shelf.

He said the MADANI Government was committed to expediting the resolution of all claims under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), although the timeframe for resolving each claim was subject to the relevant legal processes.

“The MADANI Government remains firmly committed to ensuring the prudent and inclusive implementation of MA63, grounded in the spirit of strong federalism,” he said.

-- BERNAMA