KOTA KINABALU: The Federal Court has denied the Attorney General’s application for leave to appeal the Sabah Law Society (SLS) judicial review over Sabah’s entitlement to 40% of grant revenue.
A three-member panel led by Justice Nallini Pathmanathan, sitting with Justices Zabariah Mohd Yusof and Rhodzariah Bujang, made the decision after hearing SLS’s arguments through their counsel David Fung on Thursday (Oct 17).
A substantive trial will be heard at a later date.
According to the panel of judges, they decided that as SLS had threshold locus standi to bring this judicial review application, there was no necessity for the grant of leave.
This is particularly so as the issue of substantive locus standi may, if necessary, be considered in the course of the substantive judicial review on the merits, the court heard.
On the issue of justiciability, the judgement of the Court of Appeal was comprehensive and the court saw no reason to warrant the grant of leave.
The court further heard that this matter, as had been stated earlier, dealt with whether the failure to review and provide Sabah’s Special Grant amounts to a breach of the relevant Articles of the Federal Constitution, and for prayers to remedy the same.
“That is not a matter of policy. Therefore, the grant of leave is not warranted and the matter should proceed to be heard on its substantive merits,” the court heard.
In welcoming the decision, SLS president Mohamed Nazim Maduarin said this case sought to address the long-overdue review of Sabah’s Special Grant under Article 112C of the Federal Constitution, which has not been properly reviewed since 1970.
“The Court’s decision allows us to continue pursuing this matter in the interest of Sabah’s rightful financial entitlements,” he said when contacted.
He said SLS remains committed to ensuring that the Federal Government fulfils its obligations under the Malaysia Agreement 1963, and they look forward to the substantive hearing of the case.
In June, the Court of Appeal here unanimously dismissed the federal Attorney General’s appeal against granting leave to the SLS to proceed with a judicial review of the state’s constitutional right to receive 40% of its special grant revenue.
In dismissing the appeal via online proceedings, the three-member panel decided that SLS has locus standi for the review.
