War of words over tax revenue won’t solve anything

If there is one valuable lesson Sabah and Sarawak have learnt post-GE14, it is a lesson in courtship.

It wasn’t so long ago, in fact on March 5, 2017, that Lim Guan Eng and DAP declared that Sabah and Sarawak would get 50% of all tax revenue collected from the two East Malaysian states should Pakatan Harapan (PH) and its allies form the federal government after May 9.

Lim further said that both states would receive 20% in oil revenue. Under the 10th Schedule of the Federal Constitution, Sabah and Sarawak are supposed to receive 40% of the state revenue from Putrajaya.

Lim said this at the DAP national leadership retreat that year, and it was sweet music to the ears of Sabah and Sarawak.

This is akin to a dating couple who whisper sweet nothings to each other while courting. What comes afterwards is something else. That’s when reality sets in.

The ongoing spat between Lim, who is now the finance minister, and Sarawak Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports Minister Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, is a case in point.

Both are at each other’s throats over the issue of tourism tax revenue.

While it would appear that Karim has got his facts wrong, the crux of the matter is the manner in which it is being bandied about by both ministers.

While Karim has taken a somewhat arrogant stand on the issue, Lim has been rather condescending in his response.

How this has helped the Sarawak state government and the federal government is another matter for discussion. But it could well lead to a further strain in state and federal ties.

Is this what both parties really want? Is there a need to drive a further wedge between the federal and state leaderships? Who benefits, and who really suffers from this sad state of affairs?

This should not be about pride. It should not even be about who is embarrassing whom. It should be about looking for an amicable solution to the issue at hand. Washing dirty linen in public does nothing for you or the people who believe in you and your leadership.

If the PH government intends to pay the Sabah and Sarawak governments the 20% oil revenue as stated by Lim on March 5, perhaps one way to resolve this issue is to contra off the RM2.5 billion that Sarawak still owes the federal government as stated by the finance minister, and return the balance to Sarawak.

While it might not be as simple as that, there is no harm in dreaming up such a solution. Dreams, after all, are free.

Perhaps these will be viewed as nothing more than the thoughts of a dreamer – but they would be just as good as the thoughts of a courting couple.

Clement Stanley is an FMT reader.