Growing unhappiness among segments of Sabah and Sarawak society at what they see as the raw deal the Borneo states are getting in the Federation is in focus today. Can we ignore these disgruntled voices and what do groups like “Sabah Sarawak Leave Malaysia” want? A straw poll by The Malaysian Insider conducted in the last week of July among 100 East Malaysians showed that 43% feel that Sarawak and Sabah can only solve their problems by leaving the Federation. But opinion is divided about whether this unhappiness will take concrete form. For those interested in the politics of Federalism can pick up a new collection of essays on the issue edited by Andrew Harding and James Chin, titled“50 Years of Malaysia: Federalism Revisited”.

This is a report by Aziff Azuddin.