Hajiji going through the documents before the Sabah Legislative Assembly sitting. – Bernama file photo
KOTA KINABALU (Dec 23): The Sabah Legislative Assembly today passed the 2021 state budget, amounting to RM4.3 billion, after debating it for three days from Monday.
State assembly speaker Datuk Kadzim M Yahya said that the budget was passed by a majority vote.
Earlier, when winding up the debate, Chief Minister Datuk Hajiji Noor said that the issue of the Sabah government being dependent on the federal government in certain matters does not arise as the federal government also belongs to the people of Sabah.
“The federal government is also formed by the people of Sabah, and the federal government is also made up of leaders and civil servants from Sabah,” he said.
Instead, he said, close cooperation between the state and federal governments is needed to help the people in the state.
Meanwhile, he said that the state government was grateful to all those involved in the implementation of the state sales tax on petroleum products, which enabled the Sabah government to receive payments continuously.
“It should also be emphasised that we would like to express our deepest gratitude to Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin for fulfilling his commitment to ensure that Petronas fulfills the rights and interests of the people and the state of Sabah,” he said.
The tax is the largest contributor, with an estimated revenue of RM1.25 billion or 27.9 per cent of total state revenue by 2021. – Bernama