Masidi posing for a group picture when launching the event at 1Borneo Hypermall.
KOTA KINABALU (May 27): The State government is currently looking into ways to realise its idea of setting up a trust fund to channel unused allocations.
State Finance Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun said, however, there are some kinks that have to be worked out before they can proceed further with the plan.
“First and foremost, we need to make sure that if the trust fund idea is accepted, it complies with the Treasury instructions (TI) which are currently enforced.
“If the TI does not provide for it, then obviously there is a need for us to sit down and come up with an amendment to the TI to allow the trust fund to be set up,” he said when launching the logo and theme of Hari Kebangsaan and Hari Malaysia 2023 at 1Borneo Hypermall here on Saturday.
Masidi, who is also Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) secretary-general, said they have not carried out any meetings on the matter.
“But our own officer(s) have been trying to find a way for the trust fund idea to be realised,” he said.
In February this year, Masidi had proposed the setting up of a trust fund for Sabah to channel unused development allocation that would otherwise be carried over to the next year.
He had brought up the idea considering that Sabah is given billions of ringgit for development but sometimes the allocation cannot be fully used due to bureaucracy.
During the just ended State Assembly sitting, Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor had proposed the same idea in a reply to Moyog assemblyman Datuk Darell Leiking.
Hajiji had explained that the establishment of a trust fund is a great method to ensure that Sabah does not lose out from the allocations not being spent.
Leiking had inquired on what the State government has been doing to ensure that Federal allocations for Sabah are fully spent, considering the state’s large 2022 allocation.
In his reply to Leiking’s inquiry, Hajiji had revealed that Sabah received RM5.7 billion Federal development allocation in 2022 but only RM4.4 billion was spent.