KOTA KINABALU, July 19 ― The increased special grant of RM300 million from the federal government as announced yesterday is an indication that negotiations towards getting Sabah’s 40 per cent entitlement are on their way, said Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.
Thanking Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, who made the announcement on behalf of the 1963 Malaysia Agreement (MA63) technical committee, Hajiji said he was looking at negotiations completing by next year.
“This is an interim solution, and as mentioned by Fadillah, negotiations are still ongoing with a separate committee to determine and finalise the formula for the annual special grants for the two Bornean states within a year,” he said in a statement here today.
Hajiji reiterated that the state was determined to get the 40 per cent in revenue returned to the state as stipulated in Article 112D of the Federal Constitution.
“Rest assured that we will not rest until Sabah gets what is owed to her as enshrined in the MA63,”
Article 112C and Section 2 of Part IV in the Tenth Schedule, as well as Article 112D of the Federal Constitution provides for a formula and review of the 40 per cent net revenue entitlement that the federation derives from the state.
After chairing the MA63 technical committee meeting yesterday, Fadillah said that Sabah and Sarawak would receive RM300 million in special grant from the federal government this year.
The RM300 million grant is a RM40 million increase for Sabah following the previous RM260 million grant Putrajaya announced for the state in January, which would be paid as soon as possible, said Fadillah.
“Now what is needed is in terms of administration and today it was agreed to gazette some methods of calculation. The RM300 million will be allocated as soon as the gazette on the matter is issued by the Ministry of Finance,” he had said.
Fadillah said that the federal government has also agreed to return 55 lots of land that were acquired from the Sabah and Sarawak governments in accordance with the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63). Of the total, 52 lots of land owned by Sarawak and three owned by Sabah.
The two state governments would pay back the compensation that was paid when the federal government took over the land.
