SABAH’S top newspaper Daily Express came in for praise at the recent Sabah Law Society (SLS) Town Hall session on Sabah’s 40 per cent entitlement from federal tax revenue.
The paper had been publishing a front page countdown to remind all those concerned about the April 15 deadline stipulated by the High Court to resolve the claim after 48 years of neglect.
SLS speaker and senior counsel Dr David Fung noted that the federal and state governments should resolve the claim by 180 days (April 15). But with some 40 days left, “there has been no serious progress on data like tax revenue figures”.
Dr Fung said the 40 per cent revenue entitlement is a public-interest right intended for Sabah’s development and failure to comply would be a grave breach of rule of law.
“This kind of wrong needs to be redressed,” he said, adding Sabahans should not suffer for it with power, water supply woes, etc.
He noted an appeal has been filed and if the federal government succeeds, Sabah could lose its 40 per cent entitlement. Review meetings have reportedly begun but are behind schedule.
The High Court on Oct. 17, 2025 found that breaches in failing to conduct mandated revenue reviews between 1974 and 2022, resulting in lost years without remittance of 40 per cent of net federal revenue collected from Sabah.
The court ordered a strict timeline: begin the review within 90 days and reach an agreement within 180 days or by April 15, 2026.
According to speaker and former SLS President Datuk Roger Chin, breaching a High Court order would be “terrible for Malaysia,” signaling the country does not follow the rule of law, which could be detrimental for attracting foreign investments.
Senior counsel Jeyan Marimuttu said: “The appeal, as we all know right from the start, when we commenced this action, we knew that our fight is not in the High Court of Sabah and Sarawak.
“Our fight is actually there in Putrajaya. So, the appeal process will take its own course.
“It’s going to be in the Court of Appeal. The recent development is that the federal government has requested for the matter to be heard on an urgent basis, with which we have no problems. In fact, we would like to get this disposed of urgently.
“But our condition is two. One, it must be heard in Kota Kinabalu. And two, there must be a Borneo judge on the panel.
“In the Court of Appeal there are three members on the panel. And it’s a standard practice now, because that is again going back to the MA63 and the constitutional provision, which provides that when the Court of Appeal sits to hear appeals coming from Sabah and Sarawak, they must empanel one judge with Borneo experience. So, we have insisted on that.
“Whoever wins or loses, it will go to the Federal Court, the apex court. Hopefully, again in that court, we will have a Borneo judge and it will be heard in Kota Kinabalu.
And it is very crucial that it must be heard in Kota Kinabalu, because it affects the very people in Sabah,” Jeyan said.