Sabah to see big jump in special annual grant after consensus deal with Putrajaya

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is expected to get over four times the usual special annual grant from the Federal Government following a consensus agreement on Thursday (April 14).

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob (pic) said in a statement that the state government and Putrajaya had reached a consensus following discussions on the special grant under Article 112D of the Federal Constitution over the past few months.

He said most of the terms in the amendment of the special grant were agreed to on Feb 14.

“This is a significant milestone as the last time this grant was reviewed was in 1969,” he said.

Ismail Sabri said matters relating to the review of the terms in the Federal Constitution include increasing the special grant for Sabah by 4.7 times, from RM26.7mil to RM125.6mil, for the year 2022.

The amount will continue to go up between 2023 and 2026 according to an agreed rate.

At the same time, the state and Federal governments will continue their discussions on the 40% revenue claim by Sabah.

Ismail Sabri said Article 112D on the special grant provision will also be reviewed from time to time to find a new amount that balances out Sabah's needs and the Federal Government’s financial status.

“If a new amount is settled upon before 2026, then it will... replace the payments to Sabah starting 2022, as mentioned earlier on,” Ismail Sabri said.

He added that the consensus agreement was made without prejudice to state and Federal rights to continue the review of the special grant payment under Article 112D.

He said Sabah had the right to also depend on the original formula as stated in Article 112C and Point IV of the 10th schedule of the Federal Constitution.

Ismail Sabri said both state and Federal governments had the right to refer the matter to a freelance appraiser if no consensus could be reached as mentioned under Article 112D (6) of the Federal Constitution.

“This agreement portrays the Malaysian Family spirit and the commitment of the Federal Government towards Sabah under the Federal Constitution and the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63),” he said.

He added that it also showed Sabah’s appreciation of and concern for the Federal Government's ability to bring development and prosperity to the state.