Hajiji: Paris decision proof that claim on Sabah has no merit

KOTA KINABALU: The claim on Sabah by the self-claimed Sulu sultanate heirs has been proven to be baseless with the decision of the Paris Court of Appeal to uphold Malaysia’s challenge on the group’s arbitration judgement, said Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.

The Sabah Chief Minister said the landmark decision vindicated the state government’s stand, with the so-called Sabah claim having no merit whatsoever.

Hajiji reiterated that Sabahans have chosen to jointly form the Malaysia Federation through the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63); therefore, any external claims against the state of Sabah will not be recognised at all by the people.

He reiterated that Sabahans have chosen to jointly form the Malaysia Federation through the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63); therefore, any external claims against the state of Sabah will not be recognised at all by the people.

“The Sabah state government welcomes the decision and hopes that the Government of Malaysia will take all appropriate actions to end the claim once and for all,” he said yesterday.

“Sabah, through its Attorney General’s Chambers, will continue to play its role with the Federal Attorney General in dealing with the case,” he added.

On Tuesday, the Paris Court of Appeal upheld Malaysia’s challenge against the decision by the Spanish court-appointed arbitrator for the Sulu claimants’ case, Gonzalo Stampa, on May 25, 2020, known as the “partial award”.

Stampa moved the arbitration to Paris after the same Spanish court annulled his appointment as an arbitrator on June 2021.

The French court’s decision ultimately means that the Sulu claimants’ US$14.94bil (RM68.83bil) compensation, which was the “final award” awarded by Stampa after moving the arbitration to Paris on Feb 28, 2022, cannot be enforced against Malaysia.

The Appeals Court had annulled the Paris Arbitration Court’s purported award to the party claiming to be the heirs of Sultan Jamalul Kiram II (the claimants of the Sulu group).

Following the decision, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reforms), Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, said the claimants could not rely on the sham award in France for any purpose.“The Paris Court of Appeal found that the arbitrator wrongly upheld his jurisdiction,” she added in a statement.

Azalina said Malaysia is seeking to have the annulment of the award recorded in a court decision as soon as possible, which should lead to the collapse of the claimants’ global enforcement efforts to date.