Sabah PH to take legal action if govt fails to regain 40 pct revenue

25 March 2022

By Wartawan Nabalu News

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Pakatan Harapan (PH) Leadership Council will take legal action if the State Government fails to regain the original formula or better negotiations for the 40 per cent federal revenue.

This was disclosed via a joint statement which was issued by United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation (UPKO) president Datuk Wilfred Madius Tangau, Sabah PKR chairman Datuk Christina Liew, Sabah DAP chairman Frankie Poon and AMANAH Sabah chairman Lahirul Latigux, today.

“Sabah PH would like to express dissatisfaction on the response of the Federal Minister of Finance, Tengku Zafrul Aziz in the Dewan Rakyat stating that the 40 per cent Federal revenue allocation formula for Sabah under Article 112 C&D is no longer applicable because there is a new agreement reached between the Sabah Government and the Federal Government.

"PH Sabah will take legal action to challenge the validity of the Federal Finance Minister's explanation, not to mention the new agreement made during the emergency period, which was between 1969 and 1971, involving government gazettes that were kept secret from Sabahans," the media statement said.

The PH Leaders Council held a meeting to discuss the issues that concern the people of Sabah at the UPKO Headquarters today.

Meanwhile, Sabah PH also commended Sabah Chief Minister, Datuk Seri Panglima Hajiji Haji Noor for his spirit when delivering his speech at the Sabah State Assembly recently and that the Sabah State Government will continue to fight for the 40 per cent of federal revenue for Sabah.

“However, Sabah PH does not want to see it as just a political rhetoric and they also give the State Government a period of one month on getting the revenue as in Article 112 C&D of the Federal Constitution, which is based on a 40 per cent formula or better negotiations.

“If the Sabah State Government fails to recover revenue based on the 40 per cent formula within a month, PH Sabah, especially our Members of Parliament and State Assemblymen, will not hesitate to take legal action in court to challenge the matter” they asserted.

Sabah PH said, if there were indeed a government gazette that was kept secret from the people of Sabah regarding the provision of 40 per cent of the revenue and made during the emergency period, then the formation of Negara Malaysia through the 1963 Malaysia Agreement is a form of fraud.

“Sabah PH will continue to uphold the Federal Constitution of Malaysia and the State Constitution of Sabah to claim the rights of Sabah as in the 1963 Malaysia Agreement.

“Following this, Sabah PH decided to hold a forum involving legal practitioners with concerned Sabahans to discuss the Federal Government's failure to fulfil revenue based on the 40 per cent formula as per the Constitution and issues specifically related to Article 112 of the C&D.”