By WU VUIDE
KOTA KINABALU: Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (STAR) said the RM1.5 billion announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as an interim payment towards Sabah’s 40 per cent net revenue entitlement falls far short of the constitutional obligation owed to the state.
STAR president Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan said the entitlement, calculated based on Sabah’s actual revenue contribution, should amount to between RM5 billion and RM23 billion for 2026 alone.
“As an interim payment, it could have been more meaningful at RM5 billion rather than just RM1.5 billion,” he said in a statement.
“Sabahans know the difference between a payment and a settlement. Every announcement without delivery adds another year to a wait that has already stretched for more than five decades since 1974.”
The Prime Minister made the announcement during the State Kaamatan Festival celebration in Penampang last Saturday, describing the payment as an interim measure towards resolving Sabah’s long-standing 40 per cent revenue entitlement claim under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 and the Federal Constitution.
Jeffrey pointed to the trajectory of payments over the years to illustrate the scale of the outstanding amount.
Sabah received a total of RM26.7 million during what he described as the “lost years” from 1974 to 2021, followed by RM125.6 million in 2022, RM300 million each in 2023 and 2024, and RM600 million in 2025.
“The figures are increasing, but they remain nowhere near the actual 40 per cent entitlement,” he said.
Jeffrey also questioned the Federal Attorney-General’s decision to appeal the Kota Kinabalu High Court ruling in October 2025, which set timeframes of 90 and 180 days for the review and finalisation of Sabah’s entitlement.
He noted that the Prime Minister and Cabinet had chosen not to appeal the decision on the 40 per cent entitlement.
“The Attorney-General’s appeal has created a constitutionally untenable situation.
“Who authorised the appeal? If the Prime Minister did not authorise it, he should state so clearly and instruct the Attorney-General to withdraw it. If he did, then the RM1.5 billion announcement rings hollow,” he said.
Jeffrey said Sabahans wanted their constitutional rights respected through action rather than words and could not be expected to accept a situation in which the executive and the Attorney-General appeared to be moving in opposite directions on a matter of fundamental rights.
He said Sabah’s status as Malaysia’s poorest and most financially dependent state was the result of five decades of systematic underfunding, with revenues from oil, gas, timber and other resources channelled to Putrajaya.
According to him, Sabahans had been left economically and politically disadvantaged, while chronic deficiencies in roads, water supply and electricity infrastructure continued to hamper development.
“Sabahans are tired of receiving sweeteners while their constitutional birthright continues to be deferred and delayed.
“State leaders who continue to excuse this arrangement in the name of federal-state harmony, as well as those who celebrate the RM1.5 billion as though justice has been served, should be ashamed of themselves.
“They bear equal responsibility for what Sabah has lost,” he said.
STAR called on the Federal and Sabah governments to establish an independently verified revenue-tracking mechanism for all revenues derived from Sabah within the timeframes ordered by the High Court.
The party also urged both governments to calculate and pay the full 40 per cent entitlement, beginning with no less than RM5 billion for 2026.
In addition, STAR called for a concrete settlement framework for the “lost years” from 1974 to 2021 to be determined without further delay.
“The RM26.7 million paid over 48 years without the constitutionally mandated review says everything that needs to be said,” Jeffrey said.
‘Sabahans know the difference between a payment and a settlement. Every announcement without delivery adds another year to a wait that has already stretched for more than five decades since 1974’ – Jeffrey
