SIBU: Sarawak is merely pursuing its rights to fair distribution and safeguarding the state’s future through the formation of Petroleum Sarawak Bhd (PETROS).
Pointing this out, Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) Central Youth Chairman, Councillor Kevin Lau Kor Jie, said recent remarks by the former Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Legal and Parliamentary Affairs), Datuk Mohd Zaid Ibrahim, clearly showed that he does not understand the sentiments of Sarawakians.
“Such remarks sideline the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), whereby Sarawak has rights over its own resources,” Lau said in a press statement today.
Lau, who is also SUPP Bawang Assan head, noted that Zaid had recently said that PETROS should not be entrusted with the role in gas as it would undermine PETRONAS’ commercial competitiveness and threaten the federal structure of the nation.
The formation of PETROS, he stressed, is necessary not only to safeguard Sarawak’s rightful authority over its oil and gas, but more importantly to ensure equitable distribution so that Sarawak’s gas production can be made available to local industries and the power sector to better develop Sarawak.
He hoped all Sarawakians will rally together and stay united to debunk such negative narratives painted against them as they pursue their rights to fair distribution and in safeguarding the future of Sarawak.
He asserted that it is misleading to claim that PETROS would weaken PETRONAS.
He said, as Senator Robert Lau Hui Yew mentioned in the recent Parliament sitting, there is a misconception of PETRONAS as the goose that lays the golden eggs.
“The truth is that Sarawak is the goose that lays the golden eggs, while PETRONAS is merely collecting the eggs.
“Our rights to demand fair distribution of natural resources as enshrined in the Constitution, MA63 and the law should be acknowledged, as Sarawak is one of the partners that formed Malaysia in 1963,” he said.
He also said Zaid’s suggestion to review Sarawak’s immigration autonomy is a real cause for concern as it shows an intention to further erode Sarawak’s rights.
