MALAYSIA'S VICTORY OVER CLAIM BY SULU GROUP - A LEGACY OF MADANI GOVERNMENT'S SUCCESS - EWON 

TAWAU, May 9 (Bernama) -- Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Datuk Ewon Benedick said Malaysia's victory in the international court over the Sulu group's claim case against Sabah stands as a legacy of the MADANI Government’s success under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

He said that as a Federal Minister, he was truly proud to be part of the cabinet that had secured the victory in Malaysia’s favour.

"On behalf of the Sabah leadership and the people of Sabah, we extend our heartfelt gratitude and appreciation to the Federal Government, under the leadership of the Prime Minister, for establishing a special task force led by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform), Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, to address the Sulu claim brought by certain parties in several foreign courts.

"We have achieved victory, and this proves that the Sulu claim is unfounded. This is a significant success achieved by the MADANI Government...I am sure the people of Sabah will appreciate it," he said.

He told reporters this after attending the Pocket Talk Session of the Legal Affairs Division, Prime Minister's Department,  entitled Malaysia's Victory in the Sulu Claim, which was presented by the Director of the International Relations Section of the BHEUU, JPM, Irianie Abdul Wahab, in conjunction with the Sabah MADANI Rakyat Programme (PMR) 2025  here today.

Eight Filipino nationals claiming to be heirs of the now-defunct Sulu Sultanate had filed arbitration proceedings in Spain to demand billions of US dollars from Malaysia over issues involving Sabah. In March 2019, a court in Madrid appointed Dr Gonzalo Stampa as the arbitrator for the case.

On Feb 28, 2022, Stampa ruled in favour of the group and issued a Final Award of USD14.9 billion through an unlawful arbitration process, despite his appointment having already been annulled by a Spanish court.

Malaysia has since secured a series of legal victories in the case, including in November last year, when the French Supreme Court fully rejected the group’s legal challenge.

That historic win for Malaysia meant the original basis for the Final Award -- which required Malaysia to pay USD14.9 billion in compensation -- was not recognised under French law.

-- BERNAMA