Qualla: Keningau Oath Stone

Keningau Oath Stone: Introduction

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit CEphoto, Uwe Aranas, CC BY-SA 3.0. Someone removed three words from the stone. Not dramatic words, not poetic ones, but three words that carried the weight of a nation's promise: 'Kerajaan Malaysia Jamin' -- 'The Government of Malaysia guarantees.' When the vandalism was discovered on Malaysia Day 2014, it did not take long for Sabah's political leaders to see it as something larger than graffiti. The Keningau Oath Stone had been carved in the early 1960s to record the constitutional guarantees that persuaded the indigenous peoples of North Borneo to join the Malaysian federation. Erasing those words looked very much like erasing the deal itself.

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Image: CEphoto, Uwe Aranas | CC BY-SA 3.0

Keningau Oath Stone: A Federation Built on Reservations

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit CEphoto, Uwe Aranas, CC BY-SA 3.0. When the Federation of Malaya proposed to expand into a larger Malaysia in the early 1960s, incorporating the British territories of North Borneo, Sarawak, Singapore, and the protectorate of Brunei, the idea met resistance. In North Borneo, the traditional native chiefs known as ...

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Image: CEphoto, Uwe Aranas | CC BY-SA 3.0

Keningau Oath Stone: Carved from the River

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit CEphoto, Uwe Aranas, CC BY-SA 3.0. The District Officer of Keningau, Richard Lind, who would later become Sabah's State Secretary, was charged with overseeing the creation of the oath stone. Teams searched the surrounding rivers and hills, collecting boulders from areas including Bandukan, Bayayo, Dangulad, Senaga...

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Image: CEphoto, Uwe Aranas | CC BY-SA 3.0

Keningau Oath Stone: The Missing Words

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit CEphoto, Uwe Aranas, CC BY-SA 3.0. For half a century the stone stood as a quiet landmark in Keningau. Then, during Malaysia Day celebrations on 16 September 2014, someone noticed the tampering. The phrase 'Kerajaan Malaysia Jamin' had been removed from below the title. Sabah's political leaders erupted. Joseph Pa...

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Image: CEphoto, Uwe Aranas | CC BY-SA 3.0

Keningau Oath Stone: A Promise Restored

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. In September 2018, the Oath Stone was finally relocated to the grounds of the Keningau Heritage Museum with the three missing words restored. The journey from river boulder to political flashpoint and back to honored monument had taken more than fifty years. The stone remains a l...

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Image: Unknown author | Public domain