'Petroleum justice' tops demands for Najib from PKR candidates

PKR candidates for the Sarawak state election have made five demands to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

In a media statement, the candidates said the demands are on behalf of the people of Sarawak, who would be casting their ballots on Saturday.

"The issues raised are pertinent to the interest of Sarawak and our people.

"We urge the prime minister to immediately respond to the issues we raise, as his answers are long overdue," they added.

The demands are:

1) Realisation of 20 percent oil royalty for Sarawak

We want 'petroleum justice' for Sarawak. We call on the federal government to realize 20 percent oil royalty for Sarawak, as the people of Sarawak have long been shortchanged for the oil and gas resources extracted from our state.

Sarawak has rich resources, we are the third largest contributor to Malaysian GDP (gross domestic production) among all the states. However, our average household income ranks 8th among all states in the country.

2) Annulment of Territorial Sea Act 2012

We call for the annulment of the Territorial Sea Act 2012 in Sarawak, as the law which restricts the state's control of its territorial boundaries to just three nautical miles is unconstitutional and will effectively undermine the state's territorial integrity and allow Putrajaya to negate Sarawak's future claims to revenue from oil and gas and other resources found within our territorial boundary.

3) Rescission of the 1974 tripartite Petroleum Agreement

The 1974 tripartite Petroleum Agreement between the state government, federal government and Petronas has to be rescinded as it does not serve the best interest of Sarawak and the people of Sarawak. The state government needs negotiate for new arrangement and agreement on how the oil and gas resources in Sarawak should be utilised.

4) Full recognition of United Examination Certificate

There has been a statement from the state government that the United Examination Certificate (UEC) is recognised, but a statement remains a statement and the recognition is invalid so far as there is no recognition from the federal government, which is in control of the Education Ministry.

A deputy minister of education has cited 'national sovereignty' as the refusal to recognise the UEC. The prime minister must explain how is UEC linked to 'national sovereignty', and when can UEC receive real recognition in Sarawak? We call for full recognition of UEC for application into public universities and the civil service.

5) English as the medium of instruction for primary and secondary schools

We call for a review of the education policy to allow the use of English as the medium of instruction for primary and secondary schools in Sarawak. Taking into consideration the consistent pattern of neglect for rural schools in Sarawak, there is a need for the state to determine the system and policy of education in Sarawak including the restoration of English as a medium of instruction in schools to enable our future generations to be educated through all mediums of instructions to better compete with others globally. -Mkini