Mahkamah tolak permohonan NGO Sabah mencelah kes hak petroleum Sarawak
Mahkamah tertinggi berkata Pemegang Amanah Berdaftar Sabah Action Body Advocating Rights tidak mewakili kerajaan Sabah.
The Federal Court has rejected a petition from SABAR, an NGO from Sabah, to intervene in a legal challenge to Sarawak's federalization by the federal government and Petronas. In a unanimous three-judge decision, Judge Nordin Hassan stated that SABAR lacked legal interest in the case. SABAR argued that the lawsuit against the federal government filed in the High Court in Kota Kinabalu would be undermined by the Supreme Court's decision in the Sarawak's federalization challenge.
The NGO also claimed that the amendments to the Land Settlement Act 1966 (CSA), Petroleum (Amendment) Act 1966 (PMA) and Straits Waters (Regulation) Act 2012 were inconsistent with the Federal Constitution. However, the Supreme Court ruled that SABAR had no stake in the case. The judges emphasized that any decision made would not undermine the rights of Sarawak in its lawsuit.
If the intervention was granted, the Supreme Court's jurisdiction would only be extended in the Sarawak's lawsuit. Judge Nordin Hassan noted that the Supreme Court had not yet heard the SABAR lawsuit. The three-judge panel also considered that the Sarawak lawsuit involved a conflict between the federal and state governments. Judges Nordin Hassan, Che Ruzima Ghazali, and Ravinthran Paramguru heard the petition for intervention.
The case was dismissed without costs. Sarawak sought a declaration that the Petroleum (Amendment) Act 1974, CSA, and PMA should not be applied to the state due to lack of federalization. The state also claimed compensation, alleging it was deprived of rights to its natural resources, including oil and gas in the seabed within its territorial waters.
Petronas also filed a petition to challenge the state's ordinance governing petroleum and gas-related matters, which had not yet been heard. SABAR was represented by lawyer Roland Cheng, while the federal government and Petronas were represented by lawyers Ahmad Hanir Hambaly and Cyrus Das. Sarawak's legal counsel JC Fong attended the hearing.
Written by urgent.news from Free Malaysia Today's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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