Law society vows to press Putrajaya for annual 40pc special grant for Sabah

KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 — The Sabah Law Society (SLS) today reiterated its commitment to pursuing legal action against the federal government in relation to a 40 per cent special grant entitlement for the north Bornean state and failure to conduct a review of the grant under the Federal Constitution.

SLS president Roger Chin emphasised that the legal action is for the sole interest of Sabahans, irrespective of political affiliations or their respective partisan interest, and that its initiative has been endorsed by Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor and the state government.

“The state government recognises our initiative as a non-partisan, non-political pursuit aligned with the constitutional arrangements when Sabah joined Malaysia in 1963.

“SLS remains committed to this cause and will continue to champion justice and the fulfilment of constitutional obligations.

“The people of Sabah deserve their rightful entitlements, and SLS will steadfastly pursue this and other matters through all legal means necessary, ensuring justice is served and constitutional duties are upheld,” Chin said in a statement.

SLS previously filed the leave application in June last year following an April 14 announcement by the federal and state governments of a special five-year annual grant of RM125.6 million for Sabah.

In November the same year, the High Court granted SLS leave to pursue the judicial review on grounds that it had locus standi to file the application as this was a public interest case.

The Sabah government, which earlier applied to be joined as the second respondent in the suit, supported the SLS's judicial review application.

In its suit, SLS alleged that the federal government had breached the Federal Constitution by failing to conduct a review every five years starting from 1974.

It also claimed that the federal government — through a fundamental right granted to Sabah under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 — was obliged to pay Sabah 40 per cent of federal revenues derived from the state in each of the intervening years since 1974.

Chin said Sabah's 40 per cent entitlement is explicitly mentioned in the Report of the Inter-Governmental Committee dated February 27, 1963 and the Federal Constitution.

“Article 112C and section 2 of Part IV in the Tenth Schedule of the Federal Constitution clearly outline the constitutional duty of the federal government to pay this entitlement to Sabah.

“However, this duty is subject to review, as prescribed under Article 112D. The first review should have taken place no later than 1969, followed by a second review no later than 1974,” he said.

Subsequent to the April 14 announcement, the federal government subsequently published a Review Order that revoked the Sabah Special Grant (First Review) Order 1970.

“SLS deems this action by the federal government a serious breach of its constitutional duty, which has had significant legal consequences.

“The people of Sabah have suffered the consequences of this breach for a prolonged period from 1974 to 2021, amounting to 48 years of denied entitlement,” Chin said.