KUCHING: Pakatan Harapan (PH) Sarawak’s latest statement on Oil & Gas Royalties to Sarawak as a whole has made Assistant Minister in the Chief Minister’s Office, Abdullah Saidol to question whether PH Sarawak leaders are of the same wavelength with their masters in the Federal Administration or not.
Abdullah Saidol said Economic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali had said that Oil & Gas Royalties would be based on Net Profit and not Gross Production as presently practised.
And Azmin had also admitted that PH Government does not foresee encountering constraint in its effort to increase the royalty when drafting up its election manifesto.
Azmin had also further stated that amendment to Petroleum Development Act (PDA) is necessary to accommodate the revision of royalties payment.
Abdullah said on the other hand, Chong and PH Sarawak in their latest statement stated that,
“If Petronas cannot afford to pay the full 20% royalties, the Federal Govt will top up the shortfall”.
“It looks like PH Sarawak and PH Federal Ministers are not communicating well and such situation doesn’t give much credibility to PH Sarawak’s “New Deal”.
“It’s either Chong table the said Motion to amend Section 2(1) of PDA as promised or PH Sarawak should advise Azmin that Section 3(2) of the PDA states that
‘The Corporation shall be subjected to the Control and Direction of the Prime Minister who may from time to time issue such direction as he may deem fit’.
“My advice to Chong and PH Sarawak leaders, please do Sarawakians a favour by recommending to PM to grant 20 % royalties which should not derive from profit but from the value of oil & gas production. I believe majority of Sarawak GPS MPs will support such action,” Abdullah said in a statement yesterday in his reaction to PH Sarawak’s latest statement on Oil and Gas Royalties for Sarawak.
Abdullah said Chong and PH Sarawak should act accordingly rather than wasting time coming up with all sort of bluffing deal.
“Do you really expect Sarawakians to believe that PH Federal Government will top up the shortfall if 20 per cent royalties cannot be paid in full? Please stop insulting Sarawakians,” Abdullah said.
According to him, Item 3 in their statement is another example of an obvious manipulation which PH leaders are good at, basically it says, due to rejection by Sarawak Government of their initial offer, the Federal Government was compelled to renegotiate the whole matter.
“When did the Federal Government make that offer? The offer was from PH Sarawak.
“Perhaps, Chong and PH Sarawak should get PM or Minister of Finance to announce officially of the “New Deal” because we don’t think PH Sarawak is capable of fulfilling such ‘new deal’ without official endorsement of the Federal Cabinet,” Abdullah said.
“Again PH Sarawak talks about its proposal that Sarawak State should take full financial obligations to administer all matters relating to Education and Healthcare.
Abdullah said, “Whilst PH Sarawsk obviously sounds sceptical about its ability to fullfil its promises on royalties, shockingly now it wants Sarawak State to be financially bunden by taking over the administration of Education and Health which are well stipulated in the Federal Constitution as the Constitutional Obligation of the Federal Government.
“That’s a glaring attempt to betray Sarawakians and at the same time favouring its PH master in Federal.
“I suggest the two, namely the Federal Minister and Assistant Minister from PH Sarawak to concentrate on their ministerial duties.
“Make sure JKR gets big allocation and builds better roads in Sarawak and to Chong, do you really believe prices of essential goods are going down?
“No wonder PH Sarawak Chairman was given only a Deputy Federal Minister post.”
