Oil royalty payment to Sabah: Six businessmen filed suit seeking declaration, agreement null and void
26th September, 2012 KOTA KINABALU: Six Sabahans businessmen yesterday filed a suit at the High Court seeking declaration that the agreement pertaining to the five per cent oil royalty payment between Petroliam Nasional Berhad and the Sabah State Government in 1976 is ultra vires null and void.The plaintiffs who filed the suit at the High Court’s registry through their counsel Marcel Jude Joseph named Petroliam Nasional Berhad as first defendant and Sabah State Government as second defendant.
Zainal Ajamain, Lahirul Latigu, Mohd Julpikar Ab Mijan, Joseph Wilfred, Duli
Dullie Mari
Marie and Michael Peter Govind @ Mick Goviind are also seeking a
declaration that Petroleum Development Act 1974 insofar as it applies
to the said agreement entered on June 14, 1976 is also ultra vires null
and void.They are also claiming damages, costs, statutory interest and any other relief deemed fit by the court.
In their statement of claim, the plaintiffs claimed that both defendants entered the agreement after the Petroleum Development Act 1974 was passed.
The plaintiffs among others stressed that by the Petroleum Development Act, 1974, the entire ownership and the exclusive rights, powers, liberties and privileges of exploring, exploiting, winning and obtaining petroleum whether lying onshore or offshore of Malaysia is vested in Petronas.
In return of this, they claimed it is agreed that Petronas shall make to the government cash payment in the form of yearly sum amounting to the equivalent of five per cent of the value of the petroleum won and saved from areas in Sabah and sold by Petronas or its agents or contractors during the period provided in Clause 2.
It is further agreed that the government waives any right to royalty or any other payment payable pursuant to any oil mining lease, license or agreement under the Land Ordinance of Sabah or any other written law relating to petroleum for the time being in force in Sabah.
They stressed that the agreement is null and void and ultra vires article 74 of the Federal Constitution and the Ninth Schedule of the Federal Constitution which among others stated, except as to State rights over permits and licences, that the Federal Government has rights over development of mineral of mineral resources, mines, mining, minerals and mineral ores, oils and oil-fields, petroleum products, safety in mines, oilfields, gas and gasworks, production and distribution of power and energy.
Furthermore they claimed that the agreement is unenforceable by reason of the Petroleum Act 1974 being in contravention of Article 13 of the Federal Constitution of Malaysia which states that no law shall provide for compulsory acquisition or the use of property without compensation.
The plaintiffs also said that the agreement was executed by the executive arm of the State Government of Sabah and has yet to receive the approval and consent of the State Legislative Assembly and is therefore ultra vires null and void.
They pointed out that the agreement is also ultra vires null and void as it is merely a vesting deed and to date there is no agreement or contract between the first and second defendants in regard to the sharing and exploitation of the onshore and offshore resources of petroleum belonging to the State of Sabah.
They further claimed that the vesting of the petroleum resources of Sabah under the said agreement by the second defendant into the hands of the first defendant by which is neither the executive or legislative part of the Federal Government of Malaysia but merely a company incorporated under the Company’s Act 1965 is ultra vires null and void.
Meanwhile, Zainal who is the group spokesman and calling themselves R for Sabah or Royalty for Sabah told reporters that it is illegal for the Federal Government to take any of the oil as it is belongs to the people of Sabah.
“It is illegal for the Federal Government to take any of our oil,
all 100% of it belongs to the people of Sabah, the Malaysia Agreement
1963 is very clear on this,” he said.
He said the oil should be given back to Sabahans and let them decide as to how much should be given to the Federal Government.He also said that similar suits will be filed in Kelantan, Terengganu and Sarawak.
<><><>
I had written in my recent latest message for Malaysia day and I post later,
Joshua
2. Now it is the lost cause in Oil and Gas in Sabah.
ReplyDeleteSabah has been so generous to give spaces to the Project IC in millions of foreigners.
Sabah has been so generous too to give all the wealth away and retain only 5%.
I want the leaders in 1976 to search their conscience as to why they had been
so generous to give almost everything away despite 20 points and the Malaysia Agreement
under the watchful eyes of the British colonialists.
If you own some land and houses, do you allow others to occupy 95% of the
property and you use only 5% of the said asset?
Nincompoops are so clever now as they play up again in the mass media. Who do you think they fool?
The foolishness statement is about how much we in Sabah must get back? 10%, 15%,
20% and some 25% and better still 30%? Are those percentages reality with the
present scenario when long terms contracts already signed away with foreigners
(non Sabahans and foreigners)? We Sabahans had been cheated since 1976.
It was written on the wall with BLOOD of triple 6. So some people
are so happy to toy with Blood in their hands.
So why not after 30 years, we take it back 100%. Even some land tenure was reduced to
30 years and then subject to new terms and conditions. So why not the Petroleum
Development Acr be repealed after 30 years and all those contracts to be declared
null and void. All we need is to amend the Act of Parliament with a fixed term
and let others complain. The poor rakyat had been complaining about the Oil and Gas but nobody is listening.
Now as the GE 13 is looming, some fools want to fool others with some listening
devices which would be switched off after GE13. There we go again.
The reality is 5% is already locked up. Any change in that rate would mean the overall fund (the low one) would be the same and only play with some figures to fool themselves.
Any sincere parliamentarian to bring an amendment to the Petroleum Development Act 144?
Act now or forever ‘dead’.
That would be "Janji Ditepati" - promise fulfilled for 50 years of Sabah in Malaysia that Sabahans would be fools and poor.
Time for a total change under the acronym “PUTERA” AMEN.
To know more of IGGG go to http://fresh-air-in–iggg.blogspot.com.
Joshua Y. C. Kong
PM for IGGG Malaysia for the good of all.
Press your forward button to send to mail list. Thank you.
We don't need any legal suit to fight this case.
ReplyDeleteDo you go to Courts when robbers are your own leaders past and present?
All we need to do is to search our own conscience, for those who want to call themselves leaders and not ROBBERS.
Socalled leaders albeit illegal ones because most General Elections had been rigged to the bone,
ReplyDeleteso remind yourselves now and forever -
I am a leader and NOT a robber...
Who can change the spots of Robbers who are pretending to be also our ROBBERS in our homeland?
ReplyDeleteSincere and simple people, please make this change possible so that Sabah and Sabahans are given back their divine rights to what they belong.
Do you like others to treat you as you treat others?
So HOLLOW for such leaders robbing their own people for own comfort only.
Have a better deal for Sabah and Sabahans.
Similarly this is done to Sarawak and remove the Taib.
Heart of Borneo
ReplyDeleteAt the International Conference of the Heart of Borneo on 6th November, and today is second day, there was a speaker from Petronas and I took the opportunity to raise this comment/question not expecting an answer.
I told the conference that Heart of Borneo needs a lot of fund to make this project of conservation sustainable. Such fund should not be expected from external source but from Sabah. The said fund should come from within Sabah. Some people have been talking of 5%, 10, 15, 20, 25 or 30% in royalties from the oil and gas, but what about 100% and return the oil and gas to Sabah and Sabahans as it is more than 30 years. Some politicians had suggested that land lease should be restricted to 30 years not 60, 99, 999. So if that is the case then oil and gas should be returned to the people of Sabah after 30 years.
Lets Sabah and Sabahans manage the oil and gas and in this way the Heart of Borneo could be sustained. There is also the possibility that with the excessive extraction of oil and gas in the deep sea shelves, Kota Kinabalu may calve into the South China sea.
So the question now is would oil and gas be returned to Sabah and Sabahans? There maybe a court case on this but I am not talking about that.
Joshua Kong