Latest news with #TSA2012
Daily Express
16-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Express
Why Sabah PH-BN quiet on these MA63 issues?
Published on: Friday, May 16, 2025 Published on: Fri, May 16, 2025 Text Size: 'Upko and PBRS claim to be bridges to Putrajaya? They are more like pipelines draining Sabah's wealth straight to Kuala Lumpur,' Yong said. Kota Kinabalu: Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) accused the State's PH-BN coalition of staying silent on important oil and gas lawsuits while Sarawak aggressively challenges Federal laws in court. SAPP Supreme Council member cum Vice Youth Chief, lawyer Yong Yit Jee, dismissed claims by Upko and PBRS that they are securing Sabah's rights. Advertisement 'Sarawak is fighting tooth and nail in court, but Sabah PH-BN is using 'good relations' as an excuse while our resources are taken away,' Yong said. He pointed to the Petroleum Development Act 1974 (PDA1974) and Territorial Sea Act 2012 (TSA2012) as laws that have undermined Sabah and Sarawak's rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63). The criticism comes as Sabah NGO Sabar mounts a legal challenge against TSA2012, a move the Sabah Chief Minister has supported, stating the State does not recognise the law. 'Upko and PBRS claim to be bridges to Putrajaya? They are more like pipelines draining Sabah's wealth straight to Kuala Lumpur,' Yong said. 'Sarawak sues, while Sabah PH-BN settles for handshakes and empty promises,' Yong said, questioning the two parties' impact where they boast about resolving 13 MA63 issues. He called out Upko's Federal minister, Datuk Ewon Benedick, for failing to amend PDA1974 or deliver the promised 40 per cent revenue formula by July 2024. 'It is now May 2025, where is the formula? Where is our money?' Yong said, referring to Ewon's September 2023 announcement. SAPP, which has long opposed PDA1974, TSA2012 and the loss of oil-rich Blocks L and M to Brunei, is now demanding Sabah PH-BN clarify its stance. 'Will they remain Federal puppets or finally stand with Sarawak to reclaim Sabah's full MA63 rights?' he said. * Follow us on Instagram and join our Telegram and/or WhatsApp channel(s) for the latest news you don't want to miss. * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Borneo Post
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Borneo Post
SAPP slams Sabah PH-BN over ‘negotiation excuse'
KOTA KINABALU (May 15): Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) Supreme Council member cum Vice Youth chief Yong Yit Jee has slammed Sabah's PH-BN coalition for their silence on oil and gas lawsuits, while Sarawak aggressively challenges federal laws – dismissing UPKO/PBRS' claims of securing Sabah's rights as empty rhetoric. 'While Sarawak fights tooth and nail in court, Sabah PH-BN hides behind the excuse of 'good relations' as our resources get plundered,' Yong said, detailing how the Petroleum Development Act 1974 (PDA1974) and Territorial Sea Act 2012 (TSA2012) have systematically eroded Sabah and Sarawak's MA63 rights. The criticism comes amid Sabah NGO SABAR's landmark legal challenge against TSA2012 – a case that the Sabah State Government through Chief Minister has confirmed that Sabah does not recognise TSA2012. 'UPKO and PBRS claim to be bridges to Putrajaya? More like pipelines draining Sabah's wealth straight to Kuala Lumpur,' Yong, a lawyer, fired. Despite UPKO and PBRS boasting about resolving 13 MA63 issues, Yong retorted: 'Sarawak sues while Sabah PH-BN settles for empty smiles at negotiation tables.' The SAPP leader specifically called out UPKO's federal minister Datuk Ewon Benedick: 'No effort to amend PDA1974 in Cabinet. No sign of the 40% revenue formula promised by July 2024. We're now in May 2025 – where's the formula? where's our money?' referencing Ewon's September 2023 announcement. Yong challenged UPKO and PBRS to prove their commitment by pressuring the federal government to drop its appeal against the Sabah Law Society's case on Sabah's 40% revenue rights. SAPP, with a decades-long record of fighting PDA1974, TSA2012 and for the 40% tax revenue – including opposing the giveaway of oil-rich Blocks L and M to Brunei – now demands Sabah PH-BN declare their true allegiance: 'Will they remain federal puppets, or finally stand with Sarawak to reclaim Sabah's full MA63 rights?' Ewon and PBRS president Datuk Arthur Joseph Kurup have recently issued a joint statement stating that as members of the current national political coalition, their parties see themselves as 'Sabah's bridge to Putrajaya,' working alongside other parties to consistently raise key issues affecting the state, including the MA63. 'The 'Sabah First' struggle requires cooperation among all political parties in the state. This must be achieved through wise and consultative engagement between the federal and state governments, not through confrontation,' they said. Ewon and Arthur added that both UPKO and PBRS have raised numerous Sabah-related issues through their coalition platforms, including at the Cabinet level which they said has proven effective, with nine MA63-related demands fulfilled under the current federal government, while four were resolved under the previous administration.
