Negotiate rights in family spirit

Kota Kinabalu: Matters pertaining to the rights of Sabahans and Sarawakians which are guaranteed in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) must be negotiated with the Federal Government in a brotherly manner.Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said being part of one big family, the people in both states should reject parochial sentiments.

"We must negotiate as siblings in one family. There's no need for slogans like Sabah for Sabahans or Sarawak for Sarawakians. We want Sabah for Malaysia and Malaysia for Sabah," he told a capacity crowd when officiating the Malaysia Day celebration in Likas Sports Stadium, Saturday night.

He assured that decisions would be made not long from now on how the rights of Sabah and Sarawak would be distributed.

He said the Federal Government continues to appreciate and respect the decision of the people of Sabah then to form the nation with two other regions.

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Sabah revenue hits RM6.97 billion: Hajiji says GRS State Government may see full term

Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah Government continued its momentum in managing the economy in line with the commitment and spirit of the Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) when it posted record high state revenue of RM6.973 billion last year.

The Prime Minister also said he wants to see the development gap between Sabah and Peninsula Malaysia getting reduced and, eventually, eliminated some day.

He said the RM30 billion allocation approved by the Federal Government to build the Pan Borneo Highway in Sabah and Sarawak is among efforts taken to steer the socio-economic development of the state to be on par with that of peninsula.

"This is our gift to Sabah and Sarawak," he said.

In addition, Najib said he would give special attention to the needs of both states to have additional allocations for basic infrastructure in the rural areas.

He also said that the Federal Government had given special funding for electricity supply in Sabah and Labuan amounting RM4.14 billion from 2012 to 2016, and a special electricity supply project grant of RM2.29 billion.

"What most people didn't know is that there's an element of subsidy which had been approved by the government through Petronas where the price of gas for electricity in Sabah is RM6.4 million metric BTU as compared to RM22 million metric BTU in peninsula Malaysia," he said.

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On security, the Prime Minister reassured that the State will remain safe under its watch.

"We will defend Sabah in Malaysia forever," he said, while telling the opposition not to "buyuk" (tell lies) to the people. - Leonard Alaza

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