SABAH HAS NOT CEDED ANY OF ITS TERRITORY IN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT’S AGREEMENT WITH BRUNEI OVER THE 2009 DEMARCATION OF MARITIME BOUNDARIES, SAID CHIEF MINISTER DATUK MUSA AMAN.

Sabah did not cede territory

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah has not ceded any of its territory in the Federal Government’s agreement with Brunei over the 2009 demarcation of maritime boundaries, said Chief Minister Datuk Musa Aman.

He said state Attorney-General Datuk Roderick Fernandez informed him that no Sabah territory was ceded under the agreement inked towards the end of former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s term in office.

He said this in response to claims by Sabah Progressive Party president Datuk Yong Teck Lee that the alleged ceding of two oil blocks (Block M and Block L) was unconstitutional as it did not get the consent of the State Legislative Assembly and the Conference of Rulers.

Speaking to reporters after chairing the state security council meeting here yesterday, Musa said the issue did not involve ceding of any state territory and that the consent of the state assembly was unnecessary.

However, he said Wisma Putra officials had twice briefed the state Cabinet on the matter.

Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had claimed that the Abdullah administration had surrendered the two blocks to Brunei in exchange for Brunei dropping its claims on Limbang in Sarawak.

Abdullah, in denying the claim, explained that the agreement had allowed Malaysia to be part of an exploration of petroleum resources from the two areas.

Yong, a former chief minister, in a statement said Wisma Putra’s explanation was weak and was an act of “explaining an illegal and unconstitutional act”.

The explanation that Petronas was given commercial rights to operate Block J and K in Brunei under a commercial agreement CA1 and CA2 (known as Block L and M in Malaysia) exposes the fact that Sabah’s interest was not taken into account, he said.

On Wisma Putra explaining that the Exchange of Letters on March 16, 2009 between Malaysia and Brunei was the delimitation of maritime boundaries, maritime access, commercial arrangement for oil and gas and land boundaries, Yong asked:

“Why then did the then prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi not mention anything about oil and gas and the loss of maritime territories when he proclaimed that Brunei had agreed to drop their claims on Limbang after the Exchange of Letters on March 16, 2009 between him and the Sultan of Brunei?”

Yong said Brunei’s Second Foreign Minister had denied that Brunei had dropped the Limbang claim and Malaysia did not respond to it.