KOTA KINABALU: The federal government’s decision to appeal part of the High Court’s ruling on Sabah’s 40% claim must not derail any fulfilment of the state’s rights, says Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS).
PBS information chief Datuk Joniston Bangkuai pointed out that while the government had clarified that it was not appealing the 40% entitlement, it was still appealing parts of the ruling.
“The announcement that the federal government is not appealing Sabah’s 40% entitlement is an important development, but the fact that parts of the ruling are still being challenged naturally raises concern among Sabahans.
“What Sabahans want now is confidence that this move will not derail or complicate the fulfilment of Sabah’s rights in any way,” he said.
Bangkuai said Sabah has waited for this entitlement to be honoured for decades, so any step that appears to reopen the issue, even partially, risks sending the wrong message and heightening public frustration.
He said this will be a test of the good working relationship between the federal and Sabah governments in delivering on the people’s expectations for the swift implementation of the 40% entitlement.
The 40% entitlement is a key component in strengthening Sabah’s development path and ensuring that long-standing gaps, especially in rural areas, can finally be addressed, he said.
“For us in PBS, we urge Putrajaya to be clear and consistent that the implementation of the 40% entitlement remains firmly on track and will not be affected by this latest development,” said Bangkuai.
On Friday (Nov 14), the Attorney General's Chambers (AGC) clarified that the Federal Government is not appealing the issue of Sabah's Special Grant entitlement based on the 40% revenue rate and will soon commence negotiations with the Sabah Government.
The AGC announced that it filed a Notice of Appeal at the Kota Kinabalu High Court on Nov 13, but only against parts of the court's decision related to errors in the judge's grounds of judgment.
