Sabah, Sarawak special grant doubled to RM600m each - DPM

The federal government agreed to increase a special grant for Sabah and Sarawak from RM300 million to RM600 million starting next year, said Deputy Prime Minister Fadillah Yusof.

He said the increase of the interim special grant was announced today by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim during the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) Implementation Action Council meeting in Kota Kinabalu.

The meeting was also attended by Sabah Chief Minister Hajiji Noor and Sarawak Premier Abang Johari Openg.

Fadillah, who is also the council’s technical committee chairperson, said although the grant is to be reviewed every five years, the prime minister decided to increase it sooner.

“Last year, he announced RM300 million for each state, and (at the meeting) today, he decided to increase the interim special grant from RM300 million to RM600 million each for Sabah and Sarawak.

“This will begin in 2025. It was supposed to be announced during the tabling of the 2025 Budget (next month), but the prime minister just announced it at the meeting today,” he told reporters after the meeting at the Sabah International Convention Centre (SICC).

Fadillah said the formula for the grant’s distribution to Sabah and Sarawak was not finalised as it would be up to the two states to decide.

The Petra Jaya MP also said four issues could not be resolved at today’s meeting: conflicting stamp duty jurisdiction, state rights over the continental shelf, oil royalties, and the one-third parliamentary seat composition for Sabah and Sarawak.

He said the four issues listed in the “Agree to Disagree” category would be deliberated at the highest level between the prime minister, Sabah chief minister and Sarawak premier later.

“The Madani government remains committed to ensuring that the demands under MA63 are resolved promptly for the overall well-being of all Malaysians.

“Other issues or demands related to MA63 will continue to be discussed and monitored through other negotiation platforms, namely the technical committee under the council, to ensure that these outstanding demands are addressed appropriately,” he added.

Also present at the meeting were the three Sabah deputy chief ministers, Jeffrey Kitingan, Joachim Gunsalam, and Shahelmey Yahya; as well as the three Sarawak deputy premiers, Awang Tengah Ali Hasan, Sim Kui Hian, and Douglas Uggah Embas.

- Bernama

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