James Chin
KUCHING (Sept 18): The federal government’s RM1.5 billion interim payment to Sarawak is a positive step, but should not overshadow key Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) issues that remain unresolved, said political analyst Prof James Chin.
He said while the payment indicated that the federal government was listening to Sabah and Sarawak, it did not address what he described as the core issue of their constitutional rights under MA63.
“It’s important for Sarawakians to remember that this does not in any way deal with the core issue, which is that Sabah and Sarawak has not been given their due recognition and rights under MA63,” he told The Borneo Post when contacted yesterday.
Chin was commenting on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s announcement of the RM1.5 billion interim payment for Sarawak during the national-level Malaysia Day celebration at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching on Wednesday night.
Anwar said the amount matched the interim allocation previously increased for Sabah and that the federal government would continue negotiations with both states to finalise a sustainable formula for the annual special grant.
Chin said Sarawakians should now push for progress on the bigger outstanding issues before the next general election.
Among these, he identified the continental shelf issue and the ongoing legal dispute between Petronas and Sarawak-owned Petros as matters that he believed could be resolved more quickly.
“The big issues are things like the continental shelf issue, who owns it. That actually can be resolved quite quickly.
“The other issue is this long-standing legal argument between Petronas and the Sarawak government. That can be resolved immediately because he has direct control over Petronas,” he said, referring to the Prime Minister.
However, Chin said other demands would take considerably longer to settle.
He said Sabah’s demand for its 40 per cent revenue entitlement could not be resolved immediately, while questions over whether the Petroleum Development Act applies wholly to Sabah and Sarawak would also remain difficult.
Chin also said efforts to restore one-third parliamentary representation for Sabah and Sarawak faced constitutional and procedural hurdles.
He noted that Anwar had said the federal government agreed in principle to increase the parliamentary representation ratio for Sabah and Sarawak, with the details to be negotiated with the Election Commission before being brought to Parliament.
According to Chin, achieving one-third representation would require an amendment to Article 46 of the Federal Constitution, followed by the necessary electoral processes.
“The other one, which people think can be resolved immediately, is the one-third seat issue. Again, that cannot be resolved immediately because you have to amend Article 46.
“Even if you pass it through, it takes two years minimum, with a year for the EC to get it sorted out. So it is not possible,” he said.
Chin said attention should therefore be given to issues that could potentially be settled through negotiations between Putrajaya and Sarawak.
“But at least some of the big items you can, like I said, resolve it, especially on the continental shelf issue, and also the current legal fight between Petronas and Petros,” he said.