Kota Kinabalu: The tabling of Sabah’s 2026 budget will be the first major test of how the re-elected state government intends to handle the 40 per cent net revenue claim, said SAPP President Datuk Yong Teck Lee.
Following the High Court ruling in Sabah’s favour, Yong said it is now the state government’s responsibility to clearly state in the 2026 budget both the amount Sabah expects to claim from the Federal Government and the amount it expects to receive.
“Failing to do so will be seen by Sabahans as a dereliction of duty that undermines the force of the High Court judgement,” he said in a statement, Monday.
Yong added that the state government likely already has its own calculations for the annual quantum of the 40 per cent revenue, but determining the amount for the 48 “lost years” may take more time.
He urged the Finance Minister to clearly affirm that the state intends to claim the full amount owed for those 48 years.
Yong also pointed to a potential complication arising from the Prime Minister’s recent statement that the Federal Government spends RM17 billion in Sabah but collects only RM10 billion annually.
This, he said, could affect the RM600 million per year currently paid to Sabah as an “interim payment.”
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