KOTA KINABALU – The Sabah Law Society (SLS) announced it will take legal action over the ongoing dispute involving the 40% special grant the state is entitled to under the federal constitution.
In a decision made after Sabah Pakatan Harapan representatives filed a summons recently, SLS president Roger Chin said the society is of the view that the revised higher special grant to Sabah made on April 14 is inherently inconsistent with the provision under Article 112D of the Federal Constitution.
“The announcement clearly states that it is an agreement without prejudice, but the federal government went on to publish similarly under Order 112D with no mention of the ‘without prejudice’ condition.
“SLS is of the view that both the announcement and the publication in the gazette as Order 112D is in clear breach of Article 112C read together with Part IV of the Tenth Schedule of the federal constitution as well as Article 112C,” he said in a statement, today.
Notwithstanding the purported “without prejudice” agreement – Malaysia Agreement 1963 – and the gazette publication, he said there remains the issue of Sabah’s entitlement under the federal constitution, more particularly Article 112D and 112C,.
Chin said that for the periods from 1964 to 1969 and from 1974 to 2021, Sabah is entitled to the 40% special grant as provided under Article 112C read together with Part III, Part IV and Part V of the Tenth Schedule.
Part IV of the Tenth Schedule provides for a specific formula for the calculation of the 40% special grant.
“It is imperative that both the formula and the application of that formula must be determined once and for all.
“There have been so many different and sometimes conflicting interpretations of the formula.
“With this in mind, the SLS action after nearly 60 years will seek the court’s assistance as to what really is the 40%,” he said.
He said SLS will file the action next week, in particular a judicial review of the application to challenge the higher special grant for Sabah this year.
The special grant to Sabah has been increased by 470% to RM125.6 million from RM26.7 million in a joint announcement by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Sabah chief minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Mohd Noor on April 14.
The order was published in the federal gazette on April 20.
“It is an affront to the sanctity of the Malaysia Agreement. The constitutional foundation documents are sacrosanct. They are the soul and spirit of Malaysia.
“Without the constitutional foundation documents, there would be no Malaysia. Upholding them is upholding justice for Malaysia.
“Accordingly, these are very tangible guarantees and rights enshrined in the federal constitution and must be honoured to the sacred words of the same.
“They ought not and should not be disregarded or trampled upon willy-nilly. The sanctity of these constitutional provisions must be upheld with utmost piety.
“There is a clear breach of the relevant articles of the constitution as set out herein in the foregoing paragraphs, more particularly Article 112C and 112D read together with the Tenth Schedule of the federal constitution, as well as the constitutional foundation documents.
“Any agreement as may be reached between the federal government and the state government must be in accordance with Article 112C and 112D read together with the Tenth Schedule of the federal constitution, failing which it would be ultra vires the federal constitution, unlawful, and of no effect,” he said.
Chin said the new special grant amount has failed to take into consideration the 40% formula and amount that would be derived by its application for the periods from 1964 to 1968 and 1974 to 2021.
He added that it infringed on the constitutional rights, benefits, and entitlement of Sabah, being grossly disproportionate to the entitlement under the constitutional documents, more particularly the IGC report and the express provisions of the federal constitution as set out in Article 112C and 112D. – The Vibes, June 3, 2022
