‘Sabah, Sarawak to get 30pc development expenditure in 2019’

KUCHING: Sarawak Pakatan Harapan will ensure that the two states get 30 per cent of the development expenditure.

State PH and DAP chairman Chong Chieng Jen said under the previous government, the two states received about 10 to 13 per cent each, from the development expenditure.

“In the past decades, the two states would receive about 25 per cent of the development expenditure,” he said.

“We will make sure we have more budget or a fair share in the 2019 Budget to develop the state,” he said at the party headquarters here yesterday.

On the additional revenuesharing formula, which included 20 per cent oil royalties and 50 per cent tax revenue collected in Sarawak, Chong said the budgetary allocation for the country would shrink, not only for Sabah and Sarawak.

“This is the consequence of the past corruption, cronyism and wasteful spending of former prime minister Najib Razak’s administration.

“So, it’s ill-intent of Gabungan Parti Sarawak to allege that Sarawak has been deprived of funding after the change of Federal Government,” he said.

The deputy domestic trade and consumer affairs minister said, nonetheless, Sabah and Sarawak would get a bigger portion compared with past budgets.

Pakatan Harapan was committed to enter into an equitable and fair revenue-sharing with Sarawak to enrich and empower the people of Sarawak and not to enrich the elites with connections to the state’s ruling party, he said.