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SANDAKAN – Sabah’s fishery operators have been on a strike since Saturday, in protest over the state government’s imposition of a sales tax on exports of fisheries since May 1.
Via WhatsApp, Sabah fisheries associations said all operators, including fishermen and ship operators, have unanimously decided to go on a strike called “mogok lautan”.
The notice also said that the strike will continue until they meet state Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan on Thursday for his response to their plea to abolish the tax.
“Upon receiving instruction from the state government that export of seafood products will be charged between 5% and 10% of the tax, (members of) fisheries associations (in Sabah) have met and discussed with the relevant government agencies, as well as with Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan.
“However, as of Friday, we were told that the state government’s decision on the tax was final. Hence, we have unanimously decided to launch ‘mogok lautan’ and stop all fishery export activities until we meet Kitingan,” the notice read.
The Sabah government had on April 28 sent instructions to seafood exporters that the tax will be imposed on seafood exports, specifically 5% on fish, and 10% on crabs and lobsters, beginning May 1.
Exporters were given a three-month grace period, which ended on Saturday.
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Elopura DAP rep, Calvin Chong who has been vocal about the seafood export tax, reiterated calls for it to be abolished as exporters would end up purchasing fishery commodities from fishermen at a lower price to pay the tax.
“This seriously affects small-scale fishermen. This is not the right time to impose such a tax because it adds to the burden of the people during the pandemic.
“I call upon Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Mohd Noor to reconsider the implementation of the tax on seafood export.
“Clearly, it is bad for the rakyat; there is no need to make fishery operators wait for the minister (Kitingan) to return to Sabah from parliament. The chief minister can make the call,” he said in a statement.
Fishermen in Kg Forest, Batu Sapi have begun protesting by sharing photos of themselves hoisting placards bearing the words, “kerajaan membunuh nelayan Sabah” (the government is killing Sabah fishermen).
Among them, Jamil Barasain told The Vibes that as a small-scale farmer, he relies heavily on exporters who would have a middleman to buy his catch, especially crabs.
“However, the buyer has stopped coming for a few weeks. I then learned that it was due to the export tax that the exporter had stopped buying from small-scale fishermen,” he said.
Another fisherman in Kudat, Utoh Sarah Maddais, 60, shared a similar experience.
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“Even though the sales tax was imposed on exporters, fishermen in the state have been greatly affected.
“Even if the exporters come to buy my catch, they would only buy at a much cheaper price,” he said.
Utoh said his family of ten is dependent on his income, which has now reduced to about RM1,500 a month.
A seafood exporter in Kota Kinabalu who did not want to be named admitted that many exporters have stopped buying fishery products from the fishermen.
“It is not that we want to make their (fishermen) lives difficult, but who wants to conduct business at a loss? Our profit before tax was already very slim.
“The tax was proposed during Barisan Nasional (before 2018) and Warisan (2018-2020), but it had been stopped. It proves that this policy has problems. I do not understand why Gabungan Rakyat Sabah is insisting on imposing this tax now.
“Our fishery products are only exported to West Malaysia; we are already competing with Indonesia and Thailand that offer cheaper prices.
“If this tax continues, Sabah will lose all business to both countries,” he told The Vibes. –The Vibes, August 2, 2021
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