Credit : Fahmi Fadzil's X
PUTRAJAYA, November 6, 2026 – The Cabinet has agreed to accept a memorandum that would grant Sarawak additional federal legislative powers under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), starting with scheduled waste management, Communications Minister and MADANI Government spokesman Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil said.
In a media statement shared on X on Friday, Fahmi said the Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim approved a memorandum from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability on the Borneo States (Legislative Powers) (Amendment) Order 2026 for Sarawak.
He said the order had received approval from the Attorney-General’s Chambers and would next be submitted for the consent of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
MA63 and Article 95C
“This decision reflects the commitment of the Prime Minister and the MADANI Government to continue strengthening the implementation of MA63, particularly in ensuring that the granting of federal legislative powers to the Sarawak State Government can be carried out in an orderly and effective manner, in line with Article 95C of the Federal Constitution,” Fahmi said in the statement.
Article 95C of the Federal Constitution allows Parliament to authorise the legislatures of Sabah and Sarawak to make laws on matters that would otherwise fall under federal legislative power. Completing the amendment order is described as an important step before enforcement of the Environmental Quality Act 1974 (Act 127) is suspended in Sarawak so that scheduled waste management functions can be handed over to the state government in an orderly way and overlapping jurisdiction between the Federal Government and Sarawak can be avoided.
Phased transfer, starting with scheduled waste
Fahmi said the initiative is part of the MADANI Government’s continuing efforts to realise MA63 commitments, especially the granting of federal legislative powers in the environmental field to Sabah and Sarawak. The transfer of powers will be implemented in phases, with scheduled waste management as the first phase.
“The MADANI Government remains committed to ensuring that the MA63 implementation agenda is translated through concrete actions and decisions to strengthen Federal–State relations and safeguard the interests of the people of Sabah and Sarawak,” he said, signing the statement as MADANI Government spokesman.
Independent reports by Bernama, Astro Awani and The Vibes on Friday carried the same Cabinet decision and the same sequence — Attorney-General’s Chambers approval, royal consent, then a phased handover of environmental legislative powers beginning with scheduled waste.
MA63, signed in 1963, set out the terms under which Sabah and Sarawak joined the Federation of Malaysia. Successive federal governments have treated its outstanding items, including environmental and resource-related powers, as part of a wider federal–state reform agenda. Friday’s Cabinet decision does not itself complete the transfer; it advances the legal instrument needed before Act 127 can be suspended in Sarawak for the scheduled-waste function.
Source: Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil on X (MADANI Government media statement, November 6, 2026), with corroboration from Bernama, Astro Awani and The Vibes.
Credit : Fahmi Fadzil’s X
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