Time for all Sarawakians to stand up for our rights – Tiong
Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing
This rallying call was made by Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) president Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing in a statement issued yesterday.
“Now is the time for the people of Sarawak to stand up and be counted to protect our fundamental constitutional rights against this attempt by Petronas to rob us of our natural resources,” said the Bintulu MP.
Tiong gave his assurance that PDP would give Abang Johari and the Sarawak government its fullest support in defending Sarawak’s rights, and called upon all Sarawak political parties to state their stand on this matter.
“It is significant that barely a month after Pakatan Harapan (PH) took over the federal government, Petronas takes this brazen step to claim ownership of the nation’s petroleum resources and the authority to regulate the upstream industry,” he pointed out.
Tiong questioned if the suit filed by Petronas before the Federal Court was done at the behest of the new federal government.
He added that Petronas was incorporated under Ministry of Finance and it would be hard to imagine that Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng was not informed by the Petronas board of its intention to file this application.
“Lim Guan Eng had said that Sarawak’s rights must be safeguarded before the election but now as Finance Minister, he has let Petronas initiate court action to deprive Sarawak of its rights to its petroleum resources.
“I call upon Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to state the federal government’s stand on this matter as silence would be construed as tacit approval of the move by Petronas to claim exclusive rights of the nation’s petroleum resources.
If this is the case, then it is a slap on the face of all Sarawakians especially those who voted for Pakatan Harapan in the last election, as the number one on their list of guarantees in their election manifesto was to get 20 per cent of petroleum royalties for Sarawak.” Tiong added that PH Sarawak leaders, especially those who won in the parliamentary polls, must also state their stand.
“All their promises and pledges would be reduced to mere ‘hot air’ if they kept quiet – their silence would be a damming indictment of their betrayal to their own people “Is this the first ‘gift’ of Pakatan Harapan to the people of Sarawak after all their sweet promises?”
The Bintulu MP noted that the outcome of the application before the Federal Court seeking to declare the Petroleum Development Act 1974 as the law applicable for the nation’s petroleum industry would have very severe consequences on Sarawakians.
“The fact that Petronas has chosen to turn to Federal Court shows that it wants to close all avenues for appeal should they win.
“This is a battle that Sarawak cannot afford to lose – the Sarawak government must get the best team of lawyers to fight this suit.”
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