Mahkamah Persekutuan tetap 25-29 Jan dengar petisyen Petronas, Sarawak

The Federal Court will hear a petition by Petronas and the Sarawak government from January 25 to 29 to challenge laws governing oil and gas. Sarawak's Attorney General, Mohd Adzrul Adzlan, informed the court that his government plans to file a motion regarding the initial issue under Section 23 of the Federal Court Rules 1995 within 14 days from today.

Petronas and Sarawak government will submit letters to the Chief Justice of Malaysia to request that the petition be heard by a larger panel of judges, either nine or eleven, as they had previously informed the court that they wanted each party's petition to be heard separately. Petronas wants its petition to be heard first, based on the dates of filing, while Sarawak's government suggested that their case should be heard first, followed by Petronas' petition.

Petronas filed its petition on January 10 and received a ruling under Article 4(4) of the Federal Constitution on April 16, while Sarawak's government filed its petition on February 23. During today's proceedings, Adzrul argued that the panel of the Federal Court hearing the petition should first hear the initial issue related to the Order in Council (OIC) regarding the maritime boundary of Sarawak before proceeding with the hearing of the petition.

However, Petronas' attorney, Cyrus Das, clarified that there is no basis to consider the status of the OIC as an initial issue and the OIC issue can be raised throughout the hearing of the affected petition. The Attorney General of Malaysia, Ahmad Hanir Hambaly, supported Petronas' argument and stated that the Sarawak government's initial issue regarding the OIC's validity should not be heard as a preliminary matter and the Sarawak government could raise it when the main hearing proceeds.

On April 16, the Federal Court upheld the national oil and gas company's application to initiate proceedings to challenge the legislative powers of Sarawak's constitution and requested a declaration that certain laws passed by Sarawak are invalid. Petronas claimed that Sarawak's parliament lacked the authority to amend, alter, modify, or revise laws related to matters under List 1, List of the Federal Constitution, Schedule Nine of the Federal Constitution.

Meanwhile, Sarawak's government filed a petition against the Malaysian government and Petronas, requesting the Federal Court to determine the constitutionality and continued applicability of certain federal laws in Sarawak.