TUARAN: No political party in Sabah forming the next state government can act on its own in pursuing the state’s 40 per cent revenue entitlement, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said.
She said this is why the government elected after the Nov 29 Sabah general election must maintain a strong working relationship with the federal government.
Azalina said that if political parties continue to promote the “Sabah for Sabahans” campaign narrative, it may create negative sentiments and ultimately fail to resolve the issue at hand.
“This (Sabah’s 40 per cent revenue entitlement) may be politicised for the election.
“But what I want to stress is that whichever government is chosen by the people cannot avoid having a relationship, dialogue and cooperation with the federal government.
“We are a federation. No state can act on its own; no state government can proceed solo in making such claims.
“In the peninsula, for example, we have opposition-led governments in four states — Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu and Perlis — yet meetings involving the Menteris Besar and Chief Ministers are still held at the federal level,” she told reporters after attending the Justice on Wheels programme at the Tuaran Market compound today.
She added that meetings involving Treasury Secretary-General Datuk Johan Mahmood Merican and Sabah State Secretary Datuk Seri Safar Untong have been ongoing since last week to refine the implementation details of the revenue entitlement.
Sabah’s 40 per cent revenue entitlement has become a dominant issue in the state election campaign, with contesting parties, especially local parties, continuing to use the sentiment to rally voter support.
It was reported last week that the federal and Sabah governments have formed a special committee to review the terms of reference for the state’s 40 per cent revenue entitlement.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
