SARAWAK today said it was running into a brick wall in its pursuit to reclaim its rights over its oil and gas resources.

The quick change in the federal government has only added to the problems the state faced, chairman of the Sarawak Consultative Committee on Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), Mohd Asfia Awang Nassar, told reporters in his post-committee meeting in Kuching today.

The bipartisan committee, formed in 2018 and made up of selected state assemblymen, is to advise representatives on the position they should take in any negotiations with Putrajaya on advancing and safeguarding the special interests, rights and position of the state. 

Asfia, who is also the speaker of the state legislative assembly, said the new Perikatan Nasional government that came into power in February is no different from its Pakatan Harapan or Barisan Nasional predecessors.

It is also not clear if the Muhyiddin Yassin-led PN government would respect all that had been agreed by the Federal Cabinet Steering Committee on MA63 of the PH government.

Asfia said the current situation does not create a good climate for Sarawak as prime ministers come and go.

“Successive federal governments have taken a stand where they do not budge on demands made by Sarawak,” he said in the media conference at the legislative assembly building in Petrajaya. 

He said as a result, negotiations are “protracted, arduous and intractable”.

The three laws in dispute are the Petroleum Development Act (PDA) 1974, the Continental Shelf Act 1966 and the Territorial Sea Act 2012, which has impeded the state’s rights to claiming control of its oil and gas resources in any negotiations. 

The PDA gave Petronas complete monopoly on the exploration and exploitation of petroleum, onshore or offshore, in the country.

Sarawak has consistently argued the legislations never went through the mandatory endorsement by the state legislature and neither was the Oil Mining Ordinance 1958 that gave the state the rights to these resources, was ever repealed. 

Sarawak amended the ordinance in 2018 to strengthen its control over the two resources.

Asfia said all three federal laws contravened Article 2(b) of the federal constitution.

In reference to the May 8 joint statement between Sarawak and Petronas on working out the “commercial proposals”, Asfia also said the committee had also unanimously agreed no proposals should be negotiated at the expense of any of the disputed laws. 

The national oil company is still challenging Sarawak’s rights to levy the tax in the court.

The Kuching High Court in March had ruled the state has the constitutional right to levy the tax, which is now being appealed by Petronas.

To prepare itself for any resumption in negotiations with Putrajaya, the committee has picked a five-man team. Headed by Karim, other members of the team are the assembly’s deputy speaker Gerwat Gala, Muara Tuang assemblyman Idris Buang, Sebastian Ting (Piasau) and See Chee How (Batu Lintang).

Sarawak is adopting a two-track negotiation, firstly with federal ministers Fadillah Yusoff and Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz picked by Muhyiddin to iron out commercial arrangements between the state and Petronas.

The second will be from the consultative committee. – June 10, 2020.