KOTA KINABALU: Leaders of the Upko party will meet Sabah chief minister Hajiji Noor on Tuesday to submit a proposed mechanism for Putrajaya to pay Sabah a share of federal revenue collected from the state.
Upko president Ewon Benedick said the suggestion followed party leaders’ discussions with several experts, including lawyers, former magistrates, accountants, as well as taxation experts and auditors, Bernama reported.
“The Sabah and federal governments need to hold discussions to determine the mechanism. Therefore, we will submit a suggestion to the state government this Tuesday,” said Ewon, who is MP for Penampang and federal minister of entrepreneurial development and cooperatives.
“We need to show up with a mechanism that will make it easier for all parties to implement what has been delayed since 1974,” he told reporters at Upko’s Christmas and New Year open house in Telupid here.
The Upko president expressed hope that the state government will submit a new mechanism to Putrajaya and obtain positive feedback.
“We have reached out to many Sabah leaders who have been federal Cabinet members and for me, this is a big responsibility. That’s why I took my own initiative with the party’s support to look for a suggested mechanism in this matter,” he said.
Sabah politicians have long demanded that the federal government live up to a revenue-sharing formula stated in the constitution, by which the state will receive 40% of revenue above a certain threshold.
Use of the formula has been suspended since 1974, with the federal government paying increased special grants to Sabah and Sarawak. - FMT
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