KOTA KINABALU: Sabah should automatically get its continental shelf rights recognised after Sarawak’s success on the matter in its state, said Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan.
“With the recognition of Sarawak’s rights, Sabah, as one of the two Borneo states, automatically deserves the same recognition. It is only fair and logical that Sabah’s territorial and resource rights are equally acknowledged and respected,” said the STAR Sabah president.
Kitingan, who is also the Sabah Deputy Chief Minister II, cited the 1954 North Borneo (Alteration of Boundaries) Order in Council, Article 1(3) of the Federal Constitution, and Section 24 of the Land Ordinance to reaffirm that Sabah’s continental shelf and boundaries are non-negotiable and falls under Sabah’s jurisdiction while its resources belong to the Sabah government.
He said, Sabah remains the undisputed owner of its natural gas resources beneath the continental shelf, regardless of the constitutional validity of the Petroleum Development Act 1974 (PDA74).
The PDA74 addresses petroleum alone, leaving natural gas within the purview of the Sabah government as per Section 24 of the Sabah Land Ordinance.
“To force Sabah and Sarawak to negotiate in order to enforce their inherent rights and laws is, quite frankly, absurd. These rights have been clearly defined and recognised by legal and historical precedents,” said Kitingan.
Recently, Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg said the state reached a settlement regarding rights and power in managing and using land on the continental shelf in line with the provisions of the Constitution.
He was cited in a Sarawak Public Communications Unit report as saying that this matter was discussed at the first meeting of the National Energy Council chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in Putrajaya.
He said it was true that the continental shelf extends up to 200 nautical miles, but below that, it cannot affect the jurisdiction of the state, and its boundaries cannot be changed.
“This has to be respected,” Abang Johari had said.
