By DayakDaily Team
PUTRAJAYA, Sept 24: Petroliam Nasional Bhd (PETRONAS) and the Sarawak government are seeking to have their respective petitions challenging State and federal laws governing oil and gas matters heard separately by the Federal Court.
This emerged during a summons for directions hearing before Federal Court judge Datuk Rhodzariah Bujang today, with both sides taking different positions on which petition should be heard first.
PETRONAS’ counsel Datuk Dr Cyrus Das told the court that the Sarawak government had taken the position that the two petitions should not be consolidated.
He said the Sarawak government had also proposed that its petition be heard first, followed by PETRONAS’ petition.
PETRONAS, however, wants its petition to be heard first, in accordance with the order in which the two petitions were filed.
Das said PETRONAS filed its petition on Jan 10 this year and obtained leave under Article 4(4) of the Federal Constitution on March 16, while the Sarawak government filed its petition on Feb 23.
He said the two petitions concerned different sets of laws, with PETRONAS challenging Sarawak laws while the state government’s petition challenges federal legislation.
“Unless there are compelling reasons from the Sarawak side as to why they should be heard first, I would say we follow the sequence in which the papers were filed,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Sarawak government wants the Federal Court to determine a preliminary issue concerning the Sarawak (Alteration of Boundaries) Order in Council 1954, a colonial-era instrument relating to the boundaries of Sarawak and Sabah, before proceeding with the substantive issues.
Justice Rhodzariah subsequently fixed Oct 1 for a further summons for directions hearing to determine the sequence in which the two petitions will be heard, as well as matters relating to the preliminary objection raised by the Sarawak government.
The hearing of the petitions is tentatively scheduled for the end of January next year.
On March 16, the Federal Court granted PETRONAS leave to commence proceedings challenging the competency of the Sarawak State Legislature to enact certain laws and seeking declarations that several laws enacted by the State legislature are invalid.
PETRONAS contends that the Sarawak State Legislature lacks the competence to enact, modify, amend or revise laws concerning matters under List I of the Federal List in the Ninth Schedule of the Federal Constitution.
The Sarawak government, meanwhile, filed its own petition against the government of Malaysia and PETRONAS, seeking the Federal Court’s determination on the constitutional validity and continued applicability of several federal laws to Sarawak.
Among other reliefs, Sarawak is seeking a declaration that the Petroleum Development Act 1974, Continental Shelf Act 1966 and Petroleum Mining Act 1966, insofar as they apply to Sarawak, are unconstitutional and void ab initio, or void from the beginning.
During today’s proceedings, PETRONAS was also represented by lawyers Khoo Guan Huat, Datuk Azian Abd Aziz, Grace Teoh Wei Shan, Ahmad Faiz Razali, Khoo Yuan Ping and Alex Ngu.
The Sarawak government was represented by Senior State Counsel Mohd Adzrul Adzlan, Sarawak counsel Richard Tie Sing Wan and Felicity Sharmela Thomas, while Senior Federal Counsel Ahmad Hanir Hambaly @ Arwi and Federal Counsel Imtiyaz Wizni Aufa Othman represented the Federal Government.
Speaking to reporters after the proceedings, Mohd Adzrul said Sarawak wanted the preliminary issue concerning the Sarawak (Alteration of Boundaries) Order in Council 1954 to be heard first, as the State contends that the matter does not fall within the jurisdiction of the Federal Court. — Bernama
