KOTA KINABALU: Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor (pic) hits back against Warisan’s Justin Wong for continuously accusing the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) of a government of failure.
“This assemblyman from Sri Tanjung only knows how to talk. Temberang (gabby or talk big) only,” he said to Wong.
He asked Wong to stop saying baseless things and talking politics in the sitting and also reminded him not to make accusations.
When Wong asked if the government had objected when Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) announced a tariff increase, Hajiji interjected and asked what objection there was and whether this one issue gave one a reason to call the GRS a failed government.
“Just because of this, then GRS is a failed government?” he asked, adding that Wong was only politicking and inciting,” he said.
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Wong had, among other things, asked why there is an increase in the ICPT (Imbalance Cost Pass-Through) surcharge, which translates to a rise in electricity tariff when the power supply is still unstable in Sabah.
He also said that the people are faced with an increased cost of living as well as a high unemployment rate and questioned why the state did not protest when there was an announcement for a tariff hike.
He said he is angry with the GRS government for always pushing the blame back to the Federal Government when people ask about policy changes that affect the state. He said Sabah is like a “yes man” to the federal government.
Later in winding up, Hajiji clarified that due to targeted subsidy allocations, the federal government has decided not to impose any ICPT surcharge to customers who use under RM700 or 1,500 units of electricity bill per month.
This also applies to smaller commercial and industries, he said.
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With this subsidy, 99% of customers in Sabah and Labuan will not be affected by the surcharge for six months, from Jan 1 to June 30, 2024.
Hajiji said the increase in generating costs amounting to RM69mil has to be imposed on domestic customers using over 1,500 units or bigger-scale commercial and industry users, among others who fall into the category.
Earlier, he said the ICPT is an incentive-based regulation mechanism approved by the federal government and implemented by the Energy Commission in Sabah starting Jan 1, 2022.
He said the coordination of electricity tariff through ICPT is done every six months annually, to be passed back to the people in Sabah and Labuan in the form of rebate and surcharge, depending on whether there is an increase or decrease in usage.
He said the ICPT addresses changes in fuel and other out-of-control power-generating costs, where these costs are either returned to customers as rebates or surcharges.
He said between July and December 2023, there was an increase of RM225.33 in generating costs due to several factors, such as diesel and MFO (Medium Fuel Oil) usage.
This is due to delays in implementing new natural gas-based power plants, delays in large-scale solar power plants, and the faulty Tenom Panggi Hydro power plant.
