Kota Kinabalu: The federal special grants and Sabah’s constitutional right to 40pc of revenue in the State are two different issues, said Warisan President Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie.
He said these two matters, as outlined in the Constitution, should not be conflated as they are separate and distinct issues.
“Article 112C of the Constitution pertains to special grants for the states, while Article 112D specifically addresses the return of 40pc of revenue to Sabah,” the former Sabah Chief Minister stressed.
He also highlighted that the mechanism for these provisions is clearly outlined in Schedule 7 of the Constitution, underscoring the need to differentiate between special grants and revenue return.
Shafie expressed full support for the legal action taken by the Sabah Law Society (SLS) to pursue a judicial review on the State’s revenue, emphasising the importance of upholding constitutional safeguards.
According to him, the matter is crucial for Sabah and deserves the backing of all Sabahans to ensure compliance with the Constitution.
The issue, he added, has been under discussion for several years and involved high-level special committees with the Federal Government on the Malaysia Agreement 1963 and remains unresolved.
Meanwhile, Shafie said the move to maintain diesel subsidies for the people of Sabah and Sarawak is practical.
On Tuesday night, Prime Minister cum Finance Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had said that there would be diesel subsidy rationalisation nationwide except for the Bornean states.
He added that the diesel subsidy would benefit the ordinary people who use diesel powered vehicles for their daily living.
The former Chief Minister also said many people of Sabah are using diesel powered vehicles to cope with poor road conditions across the state.
“People driving smaller petrol vehicles have often complaint about damages to their vehicles. Farmers, fishermen, hawkers to small or medium businesses still need such subsidies to help them,” he said.
