Kelantan stays with its five per cent oil royalty claim

KOTA BHARU: The Kelantan government stays with its five per cent oil royalty claim as stipulated in the agreement signed between the state government and Petronas in 1975.

Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Ahmad Yakob said the royalty claim was among the things to be discussed at a meeting between the state and federal governments in the near future.

He said he would send a letter to inform of the meeting between the two parties in the near future and was waiting for the right time to pay a courtesy call on Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad in Putrajaya.

“We stay with a five percent royalty claim. It is very generous of the Pakatan Harapan federal government if they want to give us 20 per cent (as in the manifesto). This matter we will mention in the meeting with the prime minister,” he said.

He said this when met by reporters after chairing the first State Executive Council meeting after the 14th general election at the Kota Darul Naim Complex here yesterday.

Ahmad said the relationship between the state and federal governments was as normal and it was ready to improve the relationship further. Ahmad said yesterday’s meeting also agreed to the setting up a committee known as the Coordinating and Special Programmes Division to monitor the implementation of the programmes in the manifesto which was promised in GE14.

“The implementation of each promised manifesto will be monitored by the State Secretary so that the programmes can go well and our desire to see a better Kelantan is achieved.

“In addition, the new portfolio of Public Administration, Regional Development, People’s Well-being and Integrity being held by Deputy Menteri Besar Datuk Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah will also focus on enforcement activities against encroachment of forest and government lands to boost revenue and zero leakage for the state government,” he said. — Bernama