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By Shikin Louis
KUCHING, Sept 12: Sarawak has legal ownership of the oil wells found in its seabed under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), which is entrenched in the Federal Constitution, says Batu Kitang assemblyman Lo Khere Chiang.
He was responding to former federal minister Dato Zaid Ibrahim’s statement dated August 23, who argued that Sarawak is a signatory to the Petroleum Development Act 1974 (PDA74) and bound to the Territorial Sea Act 2012 (TSA2012) and thus, he concluded that the six oil wells found within Malaysia’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) should automatically belong to the federal government, citing a case between the Australian government and the state of Victoria.
Following this, Lo stressed that Sarawak has dominion, meaning legal ownership, economic and property rights of its oil, gas and other minerals in its continental shelf as a coastal state under the Oil Mining Ordinance 1958 (OMO58).
“The OMO58 was not repealed by PDA74, and therefore, as an equal partner (in Malaysia), we have dominion rights in the EEZ.
“On top of that, Petroleum Sarawak Berhad (Petros) signed a commercial agreement with Petroliam Nasional Berhad (Petronas) on a 50-50 basis for any oil found within Sarawak waters, thanks to our Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg.
“The federal has imperium rights in the EEZ, meaning political and administrative rights. It is the duty of the federal government to protect and monitor the EEZ in terms of safety regulations.
“Imperium rights may give the federal government the right to collect taxes, but it does not give them the right to own the natural resources.
“Similarly, a mining company is only given the right to mine our oil. It is not given the right to own our oil. That ownership will forever be Sarawak’s dominion right,” Lo explained in a statement today.
Lo further clarified that Australia’s decisions over its dominion and imperium rights do not mean it is the same worldwide.
“Zaid is definitely giving the wrong impression that resources in EEZ belong to the Commonwealth in Australia. The giant crab industry in EEZ Victoria, for example, is managed solely by the state of Victoria itself.
“Sarawak was poor and underdeveloped, but it was asked to give 95 per cent of its oil wealth up to get only five per cent back for almost 50 consecutive years. That is not sharing. That is ‘rampas’ (seizure),” he added.
Lo further said that the PDA74 and TSA2012 were not approved by the Sarawak State Assembly and, therefore, they could not be implemented or supersede the State laws. — DayakDaily
