Datuk Donald Peter Mojuntin said federal allocations for Sabah should not be mistaken for the state’s constitutional right to 40 per cent of federal revenue.
KOTA KINABALU : – The United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation (Upko) welcomed Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s assurance of continued federal allocations for Sabah but stressed that such assistance should not be conflated with the state’s constitutional right to 40 per cent of federal revenue collected from Sabah.
Upko deputy president Datuk Donald Peter Mojuntin said while the party appreciates the federal government’s efforts to support Sabah through development funds, special grants and loans, these measures remain separate from the state’s revenue entitlement under the Federal Constitution.
“We thank the Prime Minister and the government for their assistance and the allocations channelled to Sabah, which have certainly contributed to the state’s development.
“However, we want to make it clear that all these forms of assistance — including interim payments — cannot and should not be treated as part of Sabah’s 40 per cent entitlement as guaranteed under Articles 112C and 112D of the Federal Constitution,” he said in a statement Wednesday.
Upko is one of the four components of the Pakatan Harapan coalition.
“The 40 per cent entitlement is not a matter of discretion or goodwill — it is Sabah’s constitutional right that has been enshrined since the formation of Malaysia,” he said.
Anwar, during a special address in Parliament earlier on Wednesday, said the federal government had channelled record levels of funding to Sabah and Sarawak, and reiterated Putrajaya’s commitment to reviewing and resolving the 40 per cent net revenue entitlement issue through the Cabinet.
Mojuntin, while recognising the contribution, said what the state needed was meaningful recognition of its rights.
“What we want from the federal government is not merely temporary payments or conditional promises, but formal recognition of Sabah’s rights as provided for in the Constitution.
“Until this right is recognised and fully implemented, this struggle will not be over.
“This is not a party or individual struggle — it is the struggle of the people of Sabah to reclaim what has long been rightfully ours. We demand real implementation, not endless negotiations,” he said.
He urged the federal government to demonstrate “political sincerity” by officially recognising and enforcing Sabah’s 40 per cent entitlement as stated under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and the Federal Constitution.
“Only through such action can the true spirit of Malaysia — one based on fairness — be upheld,” he said.
Anwar’s special briefing in the Dewan Rakyat came after the High Court ruling on October 17 that the federal government had acted unlawfully by failing to fulfil Sabah’s constitutional right to 40 per cent of net federal revenue collected from the state over the past five decades.
According to the judgment, the court issued an order compelling Putrajaya to review the revenue-sharing arrangement with the Sabah government and to reach an agreement on the state’s 40 per cent entitlement for each financial year from 1974 to 2021 within 180 days.
Since the ruling, almost all political parties have urged the federal government not to appeal the court’s decision. Sabahans have celebrated what has been hailed as a landmark judgment after decades of struggle to regain their “lost years” of revenue.
Anwar, however, said the federal government will study the court’s judgment before deciding whether to appeal.
Meanwhile, Upko president and Entrepreneur Development Minister Datuk Ewon Benedick has previously said he would resign from the federal Cabinet if the government proceeds with an appeal, saying it would contradict both MA63 and the Federal Constitution.