By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Feb 9: Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) has urged the Sarawak government to provide clear evidence supporting its claim that the Oil Mining Ordinance (OMO) 1958 co-exists with the Petroleum Development Act (PDA) 1974 to safeguard Sarawak’s rights over oil and gas resources.
PBK president Voon Lee Shan stressed that the key issue remains ownership, asserting that the PDA 1974 unequivocally vests all petroleum resources in Malaysia under Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS).
“The crux of the matter is: who owns the oil and gas resources extracted from Sarawak’s soil?
“The Sarawak government must explain this to Sarawakians with evidence, not merely through press statements,” he said in a statement today.
This follows a recent statement by the Chief Political Secretary to the Sarawak Premier, Datuk Fazzrudin Abdul Rahman, who rebuked Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) chairman Chong Chieng Jen for targeting the Sarawak government instead of seeking proper clarification.
Voon argued that unless the PDA 1974 is repealed, Sarawak cannot claim ownership of its oil and gas resources.
He further noted that by acknowledging the co-existence of both laws, the Sarawak government is indirectly admitting that ownership of these resources remains with PETRONAS.
He also criticised both the ruling Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) government and the opposition Sarawak DAP for failing to push for the return of these resources.
“DAP is part of Pakatan Harapan (PH), and Chong, as a deputy minister in the previous government, should have sought to revoke the PDA 1974—which, unless I am mistaken, he did not do.
“DAP is still part of the federal government under the MADANI administration, and Chong should get the PDA 1974 revoked to return these petroleum resources to Sarawak.
“GPS is also part of the federal government and has been blowing hot and cold over the ownership of these oil and gas resources,” he added.
Highlighting the economic impact, he referenced a 2017 statement by former PETRONAS chief executive officer Datuk Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin, who revealed that PETRONAS extracted an average of 850,000 barrels of crude oil daily from Sarawak’s 60 oil-producing fields.
“At USD75 per barrel, this translates to more than RM100 billion in annual revenue, yet Sarawak receives less than RM5 billion each year in federal allocations,” Voon pointed out.
He called for greater accountability from both GPS and DAP leaders, urging them to take concrete action to reclaim Sarawak’s oil and gas resources. – DayakDaily
