Joint Press Statement by MP for Stampin and DAP Sarawak Chairman, Chong Chieng Jen with MP for Kota Kinabalu and DAP Sabah Secretary in Kuala Lumpur on 24 November 2020

Development Allocation for Sabah and Sarawak Should Increase When the Total Development Expenditure Allocation Increases Nationwide

We would like to inform the media that Chong Chieng Jen, DAP Member of Parliament for Stampin, has today officially written to the Dewan Rakyat Speaker Datuk Azhar Azizan Harun giving notice of his intention to table a motion under Parliament’s Standing Order 30 to amend the motion tabled by the Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz on Budget 2021.

Chong’s Amendment Motion seeks to amend the MOF’s Budget Motion for Development Expenditure in the following manner:

1.​ To increase the RM69 billion Development Expenditure (D.E.) to RM72 billion; and 

2.​ To create in the Anggaran Perbelanjaan Persekutuan a new item of D.E. under the Prime Minister’s Department for the Ministry of Sabah and Sarawak Affairs as “98000 – Development Projects in Sabah and Sarawak” and that the additional RM3 billion be allocated to the said item. 

Chong’s motion will be seconded by Chan Foong Hin, DAP Member of Parliament for Kota Kinabalu. 

Budget 2020

In Budget 2020 last year, the total development budget is RM56 billion. Out of this, around 46% or RM25.9 billion is interstate spending (allocated to federal government agencies nationwide such as the army, police, hospitals). The balance of RM30.1 billion are state-specific development allocations which can be broken down to states. 

Sabah and Sarawak’s state-specific development allocations in Budget 2020 total up to RM9.6 billion.

RM9.6 billion is in fact 31% of RM30.1 billion.

Budget 2021

We are of the view that the state-specific development allocation for Sabah and Sarawak in Budget 2021 should retain the ratio of approximately 30%.

RM13 billion Increase in 2021 Development Expenditure (D.E.) Allocation 

For Budget 2021, the total D.E. has been increased substantially to RM69 billion from Budget 2020’s RM56 billion. However, the D.E. allocation for Sabah & Sarawak remains stagnant at RM9.6 billion.

Percentage wise, clearly there is a dilution of Sabah and Sarawak’s D.E. allocation in Budget 2021.  The proportion of D.E. specific for Sabah and Sarawak out of the total D. E. has dropped from 17.14% in Budget 2020 to 13.91% in Budget 2021.

To remedy this shortfall, we would like to propose that an additional RM3 billion of D.E. be allocated to Sabah & Sarawak.

Without this Amendment Motion, the Minister for Sabah and Sarawak Affair under the Prime Minister’s Department will only be a lame duck ministry with zero D.E. allocation.  It is thus pertinent that this important portfolio in Cabinet must be allocated sufficient D.E. allocation.

Therefore, we call upon the all MPs from Sabah and Sarawak to support the amendment motion by Chong and not be shackled down by the federal government of the day.

CHONG CHIENG JEN & CHAN FOONG HIN.