The first legislative assembly in Sarawak was formed during the rule of the White Rajahs. The General Council (Majlis Umum) of the Kingdom of Sarawak was convened on 8 September 1867 by Charles Brooke, the Rajah Muda under the orders of James Brooke, then the Rajah of Sarawak. Its members were chosen from local tribe leaders who were thought to be capable of assisting Brooke in administering the kingdom. The General Council later evolved into the Council Negri in 1903.
It continued to function even after Sarawak was ceded to the British Empire in 1946. Since 1963, when Sarawak joined with Malaya, Singapore and North Borneo to form Malaysia, in line with the federal and state constitutions, members of the Assembly have been elected representatives.
The General Council members in 1867 were restricted to five British officers and 16 Malay and Melanau members with Rajah as the president. As the population of the state grew, so do the members of the General Council. In 1937, Chinese and Ibans were included in the membership. The 1941 constitution of Sarawak supposedly end the Rajah's absolute rule over the council, however did not materialise due to Japanese occupation. In 1956, another constitution was drawn to expand the composition to 24 elected unofficial members, including 14 ex-officio, four nominated members, and three standing members. The unofficial members were elected through indirect three-tier system. In 1963, the membership was increased from 24 to 36 members.
No comments:
Post a Comment