By Nigel Aw
Malaysiakini
5:38PM Dec 2, 2014

More than half a year after the government received the royal commission of inquiry (RCI) report on immigrants in Sabah, Putrajaya is finally set to release the document tomorrow.

The delay comes as no surprise after the nine month-long RCI hearing last year gave a controversial glimpse of the political machinations in Sabah which permanently altered the state’s demography.

Throughout the hearing, public attention centred on the uncontrolled influx of illegal immigrants and the alleged covert operations by the government to grant “instant citizenship” in exchange for votes.

Political opponents are likely to declare the report a vindication of their long-time claim about BN’s sin against the people of Sabah.

As controversial as the content may be, the toughest part for Putrajaya is not what happened in the past – which many Sabahans have long suspected – but what comes next.

Here is a highlight on what to look out for in the RCI report and why it is a headache for Putrajaya.

Stateless children

Many stateless children in Sabah are third generation descendants of illegal immigrants or refugees in the 1970s and 1980s.

Despite being born and raised in Sabah, they are denied education, healthcare and a future as they lack proper documentation.

During the RCI hearing, the commission heard that some 15,000 children in Sabah were not allowed to go to school because they did not have birth certificates.

The government has until recently largely ignored the problem as any attempt at a resolution would be politically controversial.

The RCI recommendation is expected to address this matter, which may force Putrajaya to finally confront the decades-long problem.

One option, which Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had indicated, is to grant them birth certificates on humanitarian grounds.

But the torrent of criticism from Sabah politicians when Ahmad Zahid first made the suggestion gave a sense of the possible political backlash Putrajaya may face.

However, human rights groups have warned that regardless of the past wrongs, any resolution based on sentiment or resentment may create a lost generation.

The stateless children is only the tip of the iceberg as many second generation descendants of immigrants and refugees, many of whom are Sabah-born, also remain stateless as adults.

The perpetrators

The RCI is unlikely to recommend any punishment for those who were allegedly responsible for various operations to grant citizenship in exchange for votes, collectively dubbed ‘Project IC’.

This is because determining the exact perpetrators of the covert operation is not part of its terms of reference.

However, all eyes would be on the RCI on whether it would name and shame those responsible in the passing or ignore those implicated in the hearing altogether.

Calling them out may be important as those implicated in the testimonies include not only individuals but also government agencies.

While many individuals implicated have either passed away, are in their twilight years or have been punished under the Internal Security Act, the accused government agencies continue to function to date.

Chief among them is the National Security Council (NSC). The RCI heard that two National Registration Department directors who helped lead separate operations for Project IC were recruited from the NSC.

The electoral roll

One of the terms of reference of the RCI is to determine whether those who were illegally granted citizenship have been registered in the electoral roll.

If the commission determines that the testimonies during the hearing about such occurrence to be true, it is likely to open a cans of worms.

Even though election laws have been amended to disallow judicial review of the electoral roll, the Election Commission (EC) will lose moral authority if it insists on a tainted electoral roll.

The amendment disallowing judicial reviews was introduced after the Kota Kinabalu High Court declared void the 2001 Likas election after finding discrepancies the electoral roll.

A finding in the positive may force the EC to recompile the electoral roll in Sabah, which itself will generate more controversy.

There may be pressure to expunge “instant citizens” from the electoral roll.

However, such individuals would have lived in Sabah for decades since receiving their “instant citizenship” and by now have likely fulfilled all citizenship conditions.

The anti-Malaya sentiment

The RCI report comes amid a growing “anti-Malaya” sentiment fuelled by the secessionist movement unhappy over alleged unfair treatment to Sabah.

A confirmation of the citizenship-for-votes syndicate would only strengthen claims that Putrajaya, or then Kuala Lumpur, had wronged the oil-rich state.

But the toughest part is in dealing with the fallout from these covert operations in Sabah which threatens to open up old wounds.

For example, the growing population of stateless children, a humanitarian issue which was a by-product of the political machinations of the past.

Native Sabahans who already feel they are being squeezed out by “instant citizens” would not view kindly the government’s move to set stateless children on the path to citizenship and would fuel resentment.

The RCI report may also touch on the deteriorating security situation in eastern Sabah following the Lahad Datu incursion, which happened during its hearing, even though it is not specifically part of its terms of reference.

Any links between the dubious citizens and the security threat could potentially contribute to further resentment.

Putrajaya is mindful of this and has roped in Sabah Deputy Chief Minister Joseph Pairin Kitingan (left) to head a special committee to implement the RCI’s recommendations.

Any resolution, however controversial it may be, must be seen as a Sabahan solution to avoid the continued perception that “Malaya” is again interfering in the state’s affairs.

The RCI report is potentially a crossroad for Sabah where its people must decide on how to move forward to clean up a mess brought about by political machinations of the past.

Putrajaya and the Sabah government would need to tread carefully as they try to fix these problems.

In the words of Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak and the RCI’s chief Steve Shim at the end of the RCI hearing in September last year: “Now comes the hard work”.