Abg Johari silent on Dr M’s statement on oil royalty

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Abang Johari affixes his signature on a plaque to mark the launch of KEEEN product here yesterday. — Photo by Muhammad Rais Sanusi

KUCHING: Housing Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg prefers to keep mum on Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s statement on oil royalty for Sarawak.

“I am not going to comment for now because the negotiation is still on. Chief Minister (Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem) and the committee are having discussions on this, and I am worried our comment may affect the negotiations,” he said.

He told this to reporters after the launch of KEEEN’s ecological bioremediation agent at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) here yesterday.

“No comment…I prefer not to comment, but what he (Dr Mahathir) said was just a suggestion,” he said.

Abang Johari, who is also Tourism Minister, was asked to comment on the statement by the former prime minister when delivering his keynote address at the International Energy Week 2015 at BCCK on Tuesday.

Dr Mahathir, who is Petronas advisor, was quoted as saying in his speech that Sarawak could request for increased oil royalty from the current five percent but not up to 20 per cent.

Asked to explain why he thought the state’s request of 20 per cent was too high, Dr Mahathir replied: “Well, that’s my suggestion because the price of oil has come down and also the federal government gets less money from Petronas”.

Sarawak had requested for higher percentage of royalty, which was endorsed unanimously by the State Legislative Assembly during its May sitting last year.

The move by the state leaders had inspired all Sarawakians regardless of their political backgrounds, including opposition parties.

It appeared that the people of Sarawak were all for higher oil royalty to help accelerate development in the state, which is considered to be still backward compared to its counterparts in Peninsular Malaysia.