By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Feb 20: Sarawak should not need permission to explore and develop its own oil and gas (O&G) resources if the power-sharing agreement between Petroleum Sarawak Berhad (Petros) and Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS) is genuinely upheld in Sarawak’s best interest.
Former Bukit Assek assemblywoman Irene Chang argued that this confirms that Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS) had been given the ownership of Sarawak’s oil and gas resources through Petroleum Development Act (PDA) 1974.
“Sarawak should never have agreed to endorse the validity of PDA, which gives PETRONAS the ownership right over our oil and gas resources indefinitely.
“The latest agreement between the Premier and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is an expressed acknowledgement that the ownership will continue to stay with PETRONAS,” she said in a statement today.
Chang made these remarks in response to Abang Johari’s statement about requesting offshore areas from the federal government to secure Sarawak’s gas supply.
While he assured Sarawakians that the power-sharing arrangement would benefit Sarawak, Chang cautioned that the vague terms of the agreement could lead to conflicts of interest, as PETRONAS continues to be given the authority to call the shots in all the resources mined by them.
“Although this arrangement claims to balance national interests with Sarawak’s aspirations, history has shown that Sarawak’s resources have been repeatedly exploited for Putrajaya’s benefit.
“Even if both the Premier and the Prime Minister uphold the power-sharing agreement, it remains a gentlemen’s agreement—one that does not bind future leaders or compel their successors to honour the same commitments,” she pointed out.
Chang acknowledged that correcting historical injustices stemming from the PDA 1974 and the Territorial Sea Act (TSA) 2012 is complex and cannot be resolved overnight.
However, she warned that by affirming the validity of the PDA in the current political climate, the Premier has weakened Sarawak’s legal standing to reclaim or to at least negotiate for better terms with PETRONAS and Putrajaya.
“While the recognition of Petros as the gas aggregator is a positive step, PETRONAS’ persistent influence, Sarawak’s lack of direct control over offshore resources, and continued federal oversight effectively negate Sarawak’s past claims challenging the legality of the PDA,” she added.
Even if the current scenario favours a continued cooperation between PETRONAS and Petros for now, Chang emphasised that Sarawak should renegotiate the terms to put Sarawak in a stronger and not a weaker legal position to reclaim the ownership from PETRONAS in the long run.
“As it stands, Sarawak remains in a compromised position, where our oil and gas wealth will continue to be dictated by federal authorities indefinitely. The negotiations to reclaim our resources began with great promise, only to end in an admission that the PDA 1974 still holds overriding authority over Sarawak’s petroleum resources.
“In this respect, the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) as the government of Sarawak of the day, has failed her people again,” she stated. — DayakDaily
