TAWAU: Warisan Deputy Information Chief Justin Wong urged Sabahans to recognise the importance of regaining the State’s autonomy, as Sabah must have the right to govern itself.
He said that as a state with equal status, Sabah should look to Sarawak as a model – a state governed by a local party that has achieved remarkable growth.
“Its economy is performing excellently, and this progress is not only reflected in numbers but is also felt directly by the people of Sarawak,” he said.
He added that the recent victory by the Sabah Law Society (SLS) demonstrated the Federal Government’s failure to comply with Article 112C of the Federal Constitution and Part IV, Section 2(1) of the Tenth Schedule, which stipulates a 40 per cent net revenue entitlement for Sabah.
“This means that since 1974, the Federal Government has had full control over Sabah’s revenue, denying the State its right to make its own decisions.
“This issue was only brought up again after 2018 by then Warisan Minister Datuk Darell Leiking, who called for the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) to be reviewed and implemented.
“During the administration of Warisan President Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal, 17 out of 21 key demands were already fulfilled before the government changed in 2020,” he said.
He stressed that regardless of how many billions the Federal Government allocates to Sabah, what matters most is for the people of this State to have the power to decide their own developmental direction.
“Look at Sarawak — although they have not received the 40 per cent revenue return, under the leadership of a local party they have the autonomy to determine their own course.
“They share the State’s wealth with the people, generate income from exported energy, provide free education and have even built their own cancer treatment centre,” he said further.
He was responding to the Federal Government’s recent statement insisting that Sabah’s resources were not being “drained” or “emptied.”
He said that more than the question of revenue sharing, what truly matters to the people of Sabah is the power to govern themselves.
According to him, only with greater autonomy can Sabah emulate Sarawak and catch up with the level of development seen in Peninsular Malaysia.
“After 68 years since the formation of Malaysia, Sabah still faces issues of underdeveloped infrastructure, water and electricity supply problems, and damaged roads.
“All this happens because we lack decision-making power. No matter how much allocation is given, we still cannot control our own resources as long as we are governed by parties from the Peninsula,” he said.
He also reminded that although Sabah is rich in natural resources, the sharing of revenue since the formation of Malaysia has not been carried out fairly.
