KELANTAN will receive full oil royalty payments if Perikatan Nasional (PN) triumphs in the general election, coalition chairman Muhyiddin Yassin said.

The Bersatu president insisted this was not an empty promise, claiming he had already ensured oil royalties were paid to Kelantan when he was prime minister.

“Menteri Besar Ahmad Yaakob had mentioned during the time of the PN administration that we have never hesitated because, in our first cabinet meeting, PN had made a decision on giving what rightfully belongs to Kelantan.

“We gave completely without question – a total of RM400 million over 2020 and 2021.

If we win this election, we will continue. The 5% oil royalty for Kelantan will be paid in full, that is the promise we will fulfil,” Muhyiddin said.

The former prime minister made this promise during a talk with PAS leaders at Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium, Kota Baru, last night.

On the same stage, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang said the oil royalties was one of the reasons why the Islamic party rejected Umno.

He said Umno was tyrannical in denying the rights Kelantan should have received according to the Petroleum Development Act 1974.

Hadi also said that a solution could be achieved through change when voters choose PN in the November 19 general election.

“Changes need to be made because the BN administration also previously deliberately delayed state funding just because PAS represented the opposition.

“We need change. If PN wins, we can solve this problem,” he said.

Last November, the federal government announced that it was reversing the decision to pay oil royalties to the Kelantan government.

Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz told Parliament that the government will instead pay courtesy money because the petroleum production field is outside Kelantan waters.

In his reply in November, Tengku Zafrul said his ministry was still waiting for the outcome of negotiations between state and central governments.

The dispute dates back to a lawsuit brought against the federal government and Petronas during the administration of then menteri besar Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat.

The suit was filed in 2011 was later withdrawn in October 2018 following the government’s guarantee at the time to pay royalties.

In September 2018, the Kelantan government announced receiving an advance payment of approximately RM15.7 million, referred to by then finance minister Lim Guan Eng as oil royalty money.

However, this was later disputed by Kelantan Menteri Besar Ahmad Yakob as misleading.

According to Ahmad, the advance payment was only courtesy money and not a royalty payment, adding that Kelantan was owed RM1.03 billion for 2017 alone.

Despite a general election due for November 19, Kelantan, which is governed by PAS, has decided not to dissolve its assembly, opting for polls next year. – October 22, 2022.