KOTA KINABALU: Sabah stands firm on rights to its continental shelf and is not for negotiations in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 Implementation Action Council, state Attorney General Datuk Brenndon Keith Soh said.
He said the federal Territorial Sea Act 2012 (TSA 2012) did not apply to the state of Sabah as it remains a territory of the State as declared by the North Borneo (Alteration of Boundaries) Order in Council 1954.
"This claim has been officially recorded on Sept 12, 2024 as being ‘non-negotiable’ under the MA63 action council chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
He said TSA 2012 and the continental shelf remain on the “agree to disagree” list," he said, adding that there was no doubt there has been significant progress under the MA63 Council on other State claims and rights.
Soh noted that following the latest council meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Fadillah Yusof had said that the matter would be discussed at the highest level between the Prime Minister, Sabah Chief Minister and Sarawak Premier.
"We will continue to uphold the State Government’s position moving forward," he said in a statement released on Saturday (Sept 21).
On the recent Kota Kinabalu High Court decision to turn down the Sabah government's proposal to assist as amicus curiae (an impartial adviser to a court) in the case by the NGO Sabah Action Body Advocating Rights (Sabar) challenging the legality of the TSA 2012 limiting the state’s maritime boundaries to three nautical miles, Soh said they respected the decision of the High Court Judge.
“The Sabar supported our Sabah government's offer but the Federal Attorney General had objected to the state's role in assisting the court.
"It is the discretion of the court to determine whether our assistance is required or not to decide the legal dispute between these two parties. In this case, the court decided otherwise," Soh said.
Despite this outcome, Soh said that the Sabah government remained sincere in its offer to provide the State’s official legal views on this matter of public interest.
"Rest assured, we will certainly continue to monitor the developments of this case very closely," he added.
Soh pointed out that based on the ruling of the court, it remains open for the State Government to intervene as a party in the legal proceedings.
"This option will be rigorously considered amongst all other options depending on the result of the MA63 Council deliberation on this matter," he added.
