KOTA KINABALU: Sabah will not rest on its laurels despite getting an increased special grant of RM300mil from Putrajaya.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said the state government welcomes the decision on the special grant payment by the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) technical committee as announced by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof on Tuesday (July 18).
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Hajiji said the increase in the special grant amount from the Federal Government was another clear indication that the state government was on the right path towards getting Sabah's entitlement as stipulated in Article 112D of the Federal Constitution.
"Rest assured that we will not rest until Sabah gets what is owed as enshrined in the MA63," he said in a statement on Wednesday (July 19).
The Chief Minister reiterated the state government’s stand that Sabah has never relinquished rights to the 40% tax revenue owed by the Federal Government to the state.
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"This (RM300mil) is an interim solution and as mentioned by Fadillah, negotiations are still ongoing with a separate committee to determine and finalise the formula for the annual special grants for the two Bornean states within a year," he said.
Hajiji stressed that Sabah would continue to fight for the special grant entitlement according to Article 112C and Section 2 of Part IV in the Tenth Schedule, as well as Article 112D of the Constitution, which provides for a formula and review of the 40% net revenue entitlement that the federation derives from the state.
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After chairing the MA63 technical committee meeting on Tuesday, Fadillah said Sabah and Sarawak would receive RM300mil in special grants from the Federal Government this year.
The RM300mil grant is a RM40mil increase for Sabah following the previous RM260mil grant Putrajaya announced for the state in January, which would be paid as soon as possible, said Fadillah, who is also chairman of the MA63 committee.
