The Federal Government should reveal transparently the formula that was agreed with the Sabah and Sarawak Government to derive the current quantum when it comes to the special grants for Sabah and Sarawak under Article 112D of the Federal Constitution.
While I welcome the current increase to RM 300, million by the current Unity Government lead by YAB Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim which shows his sincerity towards addressing the inequality of development between the Borneo States, what is more important is a clear and set formula to ensure the increase in the special grants will be clear and sustainable, not merely at the whims of fancy of any government.
The quantum of the Special Grants under Article 112D before this was never revised since 1969 by previous government even when it was clearly stated in the constitution that every 5 years there will be a revision. However, it was then revised and doubled by the Pakatan Harapan Government in 2019 within view of further increments in the coming years.
That is why I welcome the current Prime Minister’s move to increase it which reflects the spirit that was first carried by Pakatan Harapan(PH).
However, after the fall of the PH due to the Sheraton Move, it was decreased back to the original figure as on 1969 and did not increased until this year under this current government.
That is why it is important that a clear and transparent formula has to be in place to ensure the figures and amount that is given does not go up and down based merely on political considerations, but rather on a proper equitable structure and formula to ensure it is sustainable.
For Sabah it is rather clear with “40% of federal collection in Sabah to be returned” stated in the constitution, but for Sarawak, it is not explicitly stated in the constitution. That is why I hope that the government, to take the extra necessary step to be transparent about the formula especially for Sarawak as this involves significant public interest and the need for us to be treated equitably under the Malaysian Agreement 1963.
This of course includes the required move to appoint a Sarawakians and Sabahan representative to sit in the LHDN Board to get a clearer picture of the overall taxes collected from the 2 region in order to determine a fairer formula of distribution.