WILLING TO DISCUSS REVISION OF OIL ROYALTY

CHEERS.....Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin (middle) together with Chief Minister Musa Aman (right) and Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) President Joseph Pairin Kitingan (left) at the 27th PBS Congress at Penampang.

By : ELAINE MAH AND FIZAH YUSOF

PRESIDENT of Parti Bersatu Sabah Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan urged the federal government to establish a mechanism to work out a higher distribution of earnings from Sabah's oil and gas resources at the 27th PBS Congress in Penampang recently.

Present at the Congress was special guest Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin who told the delegates at the assembly that the government would be willing to sit down and discuss the matter.

Pairin, who proposed this during his opening speech at the Congress said that such a mechanism was necessary to bring about a fairer distribution of wealth from Sabah's oil and gas resource so the people of Sabah could benefit from the continuous development of the state.

"It is a good proposal. We can sit down and discuss it among the federal and State governments and other relevant parties. I don't think we should ignore a proposal that is reasonable and is the wish of the people of Sabah," Muhyiddin replied.

However, Muhyiddin cautioned the assembly not to be taken in by the exaggerated promises of the opposition.

"They promise the moon and the sun. They say that they will allocate 20 percent of oil royalty should they win the elections," he said.

However, Muhyiddin said that a responsible government must be held accountable to its people.

"Any proposal and decision that we make must be sustainable not just now but also in the distant future," he said. (Insight Sabah)