PKR promises oil firm for Sabah

Charlie Rudai

The party's election manifesto for Sabah promises a wide range of reforms that would put Sabah in the hands of Sabahans.

KINARUT: Sabah will have its own oil and gas company with an initial paid-up capital of RM1 billion within three months of Pakatan Rakyat taking over the state.


PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail made the promise and said the company which would be owned by the people of Sabah would be turned into an international conglomerate and compete in the global market with guidance from Petronas.

She said the company would provide job opportunities apart from nurturing Sabahans in the oil and gas industry to ensure Sabah’s wealth is inherited by their children.

The pledge was among 10 issues outlined in ‘Buku Jingga’ (Orange Book), the opposition coalition’s policy book, launched by Wan Azizah at Borneo Paradise Resort here yesterday.

The book basically the PKR election manifesto for Sabah, was a culmination of the one-day PKR Sabah convention where eight working papers were tabled and debated by delegates from its divisions.

Other pledges made included the setting up of Sabah Heritage Fund with an initial capital of RM1 billion from the oil and gas royalty for poverty eradication programmes applicable to all Sabahans whose household income is less than RM1,500 per month.

Wan Azizah said Pakatan Rakyat also agree to raise the oil and gas royalty payment to 20% from the present 5% by entering into a new agreement with the federal government.

Closing the PKR Sabah convention, Wan Azizah who is also the Sabah PKR presidential council chairperson said the Orange Book is a platform to ensure Pakatan would govern Sabah with discipline and uphold the rights of the people in Sabah.

Debate challenge

She said a committee would also be mandated to look into incorporating Sabah’s spirit of autonomy in the constitution.

“The Pakatan Rakyat government will also not hesitate to amend the constitution to ensure Sabah gets its autonomy,” she added.

On the Barisan Nasional (BN) scepticism dismissing the Orange Book as not feasible, Wan Azizah issued a challenge to Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak to a debate.

“But don’t send those rookies under you,” she said to laughter from the floor.

In the same breath, she also promised that the leadership of Sabah PKR would be chosen by the PKR leaders of Sabah themselves.

According to vice president Fuziah Salleh, the Buku Jingga for Sabah outlines issues that have been ignored by the BN government.

She said that following the formation of the presidential council, Sabah PKR had also grown stronger giving its more confidence to face the next general election.

The next step, she said, was to launch the state’s election machinery by emphasising at the divisional level next month.

Other promises for Sabah

Another noteworthy reform pledge in the Buku Jingga for Sabah is the promise to revoke the continued payment of ‘rent’ to the Philippines over its claim on Sabah and to demand Sabah’s right for the oil blocks L and M by bringing it to the State Legislative Assembly, which was excised without consent from the people.

PKR also promised to set up the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on the illegal immigrant issues in Sabah and to offer a permanent resident status but without voting rights to the illegals in order to regularise the citizenship and electoral rolls.

Also high on the agenda is a need to address the Native Customary Right land issues and retract all court cases brought up by the state government, if it clearly abused the NCR.

Another is to strengthen Sabah’s autonomy by reviewing the 20-pont agreement and to stop anything that had violated any of these points, to launch the Borneonisation programme at the public service in stages and to pursue all unresolved claims on all small islands in Sabah waters.

Also on hand were Sabah PKR leaders including Christina Liew, Dr Roland Chia and speakers Kong Hon Min and Dr Chong Eng Leong as well as presidential council members.