Clearly an election budget – Jeffrey

KOTA KINABALU: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak has lost the golden opportunity to make good Sabah’s 40% net revenue entitlement and other revenues under the Federal Constitution, said Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan, the assemblyman for Bingkor.

“Budget 2018 is clearly an election budget with goodies here and there, especially for government servants but a major disappointment for Sabah,” he claimed, adding that it confirmed “Sabah is nothing more than a mere cash-cow”.

“Hopefully, the civil servants, especially those in Sabah, will vote wisely in GE14 and not condemn Sabahans to a bleak future,” Jeffrey said.

He said: “Sarawak and Sabah are the third and fifth largest contributors to Malaysia’s GDP. Sarawak produces more than half of Malaysia’s natural gas production and its oil and gas alone contributes more than RM50 billion annually.

“Sabah produces some 65% of the nation’s crude oil production with the two largest oil production platforms, producing 193,000 and 135,000 barrels per day.

“At the current price of USD60 per barrel, they are worth more than RM83.64 billion annually. In comparison, the latest Terengganu platform only produces 2,000 barrels per day.

“In terms of palm oil, Sabah is the world’s third biggest producer by region, contributing more than RM20 billion annually.

“Many of these oil palm plantation companies are based in Malaya where they pay their taxes to the Federal government.”

Jeffrey claimed that in terms of development, Sabah and Sarawak lag at least 30–40 years behind Malaya.

“More than 50% of the population do not have clean treated water, still relying on gravity-fed riverine or rainwater,” he claimed.

“In Budget 2018, only RM300 million is allocated for rural water supply,” he said.

Sabahans in Labuan are being lied to again and again on the Labuan bridge. The bridge to connect the island to Sabah mainland was promised to be built in the BN Sabah Additional Manifesto in PRU-13. It is now downgraded to only a feasibility study which had already been done.

A caring Federal government would have allocated at least 50% of the development budget for 2018 to Sabah and Sarawak. At this present rate of being ignored, Sabah and Sarawak will never catch up with development in Malaya, which was a very fundamental basis for Sabah and Sarawak to be induced to agree to form Malaysia.

Sabah was also promised security. With the recurring security threats and in more recent times, reports of more IS militants from Sabah is of grave concern not only to Sabahans but to the everincreasing foreign tourists who come to visit and enjoy Sabah’s natural beauty, sun, sea, fresh air, pristine beaches and nature.

Yet, one wonders whether the allocation of RM250 million for ESSCom is enough to protect Sabah?

Sabah is entitled to 40% of the total revenue derived from Sabah as well as other additional revenues under the Federal Constitution. Yet, there is nothing provided for the return of these revenues to Sabah or of the billions and billions of arrears owing since 1974. Ironically, Sabah still owes the Federal government RM2.6 billion.

Yet, the Umno-led Sabah BN government has done practically little to ensure that the Federal government comply with the constitutionally provided revenues that Sabah are entitled to.

Sabah is also entitled to the GST collected from Sabah. This is also not provided or at least some additional rebate or exemption would have helped Sabahans in their higher costs of living.

When the tourism tax was to be implemented, all sorts of promises were given for sharing of the tourism tax collected with Sabah and Sarawak. Promises of up to 50% were made, but in Budget 2018, not even a single ringgit is mentioned.

The Federal/Malayan government and Kuala Lumpur/Putrajaya need no reminding of the rising unhappiness and frustrations in the Borneo States. They have to accept the rising frustrations and increasing awareness and resolve them or accept the blame for the failure of Project Malaysia.

At the same time, Budget 2018 have given Sabahans and Sarawakians further basis for them to seriously re-think of theirs and Sabah’s and Sarawak’s future.