KUCHING: The President of State Reform Party (STAR) Lina Soo, has called for a special State Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting to reject the Petroleum Development Act (PDA) 1974 and Territorial Sea Act (TSA) 2012.
She reasoned that both Federal laws were not applicable to Sarawak as they had never been approved in DUN as required under the State Constiution. “By doing so, this constitutionalises and locks in Sarawak’s oil and gas rights,” she said during a press conference at Telang Usan Hotel here yesterday. Soo said this in regard to an announcement made by the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government that the 20 per cent oil royalty as promised in their manifesto will be calculated based on 20 per cent profit after tax and not 20 per cent on gross sales revenue. “This is totally different than what was promised to Sarawak and is a cheat.
“Our attention has also been distracted from the real issue, which is ownership and we maintain that Sarawak oil belongs to Sarawak,” she said. She added that it was time that they stood up for Sarawak’s rights as keeping quiet meant that they have surrendered their rights. She also urged Sarawakians to remain united to support and share a common aspiration to get the state’s oil rights back.
On the recent incident that occurred at SK Batu Bungan, Mulu whereby a teacher, 25-year-old Catherine Janet Tiwi, who perished in the fire which engulfed the school’s teachers’ quarters, Soo called for the release of information pertaining to workplace health and safety information for every school in the State. “Any hazard must be identified to prevent any occurrence of fire in the future,” she said. Soo described the tragedy as ‘an absolute disgrace and horror’ and that it could have been prevented if it were not for the dilapidated state of schools in the State.
“Therefore, we are calling for an immediate investigation by the Ministry of Education (MoE) to identify the cause of the fire and take action against it. “All dilapidated schools must also be repaired immediately and take fire prevention measures. “Some said that it was an accident but it is preventable as such an accident should not have happened. “It is a Federal matter so the ministry must act promptly to make sure the students and teachers are safe and that schools are fit for schooling,” she said.
