Sabah Deserves a Fairer Share: A Strategic Proposal for Oil & Gas Reform

Murray Hunter


Sabah Deserves a Fairer Share: A Strategic Proposal for Oil & Gas Reform

Daniel John Jambun
Sep 05, 2025





Kota Kinabalu : 5th September 2025 — Recent revelations that PETRONAS has extracted an estimated RM225 trillion from Sarawak’s oil and gas wealth over five decades while returning only 5% in royalties expose a scandal of historic proportions. Sabah has suffered the same fate. For decades, billions have been siphoned from our land, while our people remain the poorest in Malaysia.

This is no longer acceptable. The time has come for Sabah to demand not handouts, not empty promises—but justice, fairness, and dignity in managing our own resources.

1. Revenue Recalibration & Fiscal Autonomy

Sabah must renegotiate its royalty structure to a minimum of 20%, in line with Sarawak’s advocacy, and go further by asserting its constitutional right to impose a State Sales Tax (SST) on petroleum products. This is no longer a request but a constitutional entitlement. Independent, transparent audits of PETRONAS’ earnings from Sabah are non-negotiable to uncover the true scale of revenue extraction.

2. Sabah-Owned Energy Infrastructure

We must break free from total dependency on federal control. The Sabah Energy Corporation (SEC) should be expanded into a full-fledged oil and gas aggregator. With LNG terminals and refineries in Sipitang and Sandakan, Sabah can process and export its own resources. The establishment of a Sabah Petroleum Hub will centralize logistics, strengthen state control, and keep more value within Sabah’s borders.

3. Transparent Governance & Public Accountability

Resource wealth must not disappear into political patronage networks. We call for:

Annual publicly published resource revenue reports.

An independent Energy Oversight Council including civil society, indigenous representatives, and economists.

Full digitization of licensing and contracts to close the door on corruption and elite capture.

4. Sustainable Development & Indigenous Inclusion

Sabah’s oil and gas wealth must uplift its people—not enrich only the few. This requires:

Mandatory community dividends for oil-producing districts.

Strong protection of Native Customary Rights (NCR) lands.

Long-term reinvestment of oil wealth into renewable energy projects, ensuring rural Sabahans benefit directly from the energy transition.

5. Strategic Diplomacy & Federal Negotiation

Sabah must stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Sarawak to form a Borneo Energy Bloc—a united front in federal negotiations. The guarantees of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) must be enforced, not delayed or diluted. At the same time, Sabah should leverage international partnerships for technical expertise, capital investment, and diplomatic weight to strengthen its bargaining power.

Conclusion

For far too long, Sabah’s resources have enriched Putrajaya while our people remain trapped in poverty. This proposal is more than reform—it is a blueprint for economic justice, sustainable development, and political dignity.

We call on all Sabah leaders, regardless of party, to rise above partisan interests and unite for Sabah’s future. To remain silent is to be complicit in our people’s suffering.

Sabah deserves better. The time for change is now.

Daniel John Jambun

President

Borneo's Plight in Malaysia Foundation (BoPiMaFo)