Sabah, biggest contributor to national economy, remains poor

KOTA KINABALU - Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) has taken the State government to task for failing to safeguard the interest of the local companies, where it has failed to ensure they get a bigger share of the Sabah Oil and Gas Terminal (SOGT) project.

Its Women Chief Melanie Chia claimed that the main contract work was given to a Sarawak company.

She claimed to have learnt that the Sarawak's company had subcontracted the main contract works with a total contract value of RM2.4 billion to a Korean company and even the canteen at the site is operated by Korean.

She noted that there are 35 Sabah companies or companies with Sabahans' interest obtained sub contract works under the SOGT main contract.

"But the total value of these sub contract works is only RM470million, or a mere 19.6 per cent of the total contract value of RM2.4 billion. Even the Kimanis new township will be developed by a Miri based company Homelite Development Sdn Bhd.

"I don't believe that we do not have enough local companies who can do the jobs. We also have very established and esteemed developers who can develop the new township.'

"Do we have to be subservient that we will remain to play second fiddle all the time, and in our own state?" she asked.

Melanie who is also State Assemblywoman for Luyang questioned this while speaking at a talk themed Sabah's Future organised by the SAPP Luyang Central Liaison Committee (CLC), at the Maxim coffee shop at Taman Far East in Luyang here, on Saturday.

Also present, among others, were SAPP President Datuk Seri Panglima Yong Teck Lee, Party's Advisor who is also former Sabah Finance Minister Datuk Mohd Noor Mansoor, Deputy President cum Likas Assemblyman Datuk Liew Teck Chan, Vice President Datuk Wong Yit Ming, Deputy President Don Chin and Information Chief Chong Pit Fah. Supreme Councillors Carrie Fong, Chia Miu Lee and Abdul Malik Mohed were also present.

Melanie also said Barisan Nasional (BN) government owes the people a good explanation as to why Sabah remains the poorest state in Malaysia despite being blessed with abundance of natural resources.

She lamented that despite being the sixth biggest contributor to the national economy and contributing more than 25% of the national oil and gas production, Sabah remains the poorest state in Malaysia.

She reminded that Sabah's oil reserve was at 1.5 billion barrels as at 2011 and more new oil fields were found in the last two years with an estimated reserve of not less than 227 million barrels of petroleum were found.

In addition to that, the gas reserves stand at 11 trillion cubic feet and there are four new oil fields found in the Sabah waters in the last two years.

"Although the projected production from the Gumusat/Kakap Project at 135,000 barrels per day is reported to come on stream this year, it is never really known what Sabah's share is from these new fields because Petronas is working on contract sharing basis with other oil producing companies," she said.

Worst still, she added, Sabah has the highest number of unemployment at 5.6 per cent or 76,000 people without job.

"Obviously something is not right with the present government otherwise Sabah would not end up the poorest despite having abundance of oil and gas," she said.

She thus called on Malaysians in Sabah to rise up to the occasion in this coming general election, to effect change for a better future for themselves and their children.