KOTA KINABALU, Nov 27 (Bernama) -- The decision to grant authority to the Sabah and Sarawak governments to implement projects valued at RM50 million and below reflects Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s firm commitment to realising the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), said Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali.
Armizan, a former Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Sabah, Sarawak Affairs and Special Functions) who previously headed the MA63 Secretariat under the Sabah and Sarawak Affairs Division, said that the Cabinet Note dated Dec 21, 2022, outlined several outstanding issues related to MA63 - with the devolution of power being one of them.
He said the Finance Ministry, led by Anwar himself, had responded positively by proposing that federal powers be devolved to Sabah and Sarawak for the implementation of projects valued at RM30 million and below.
“At that time, I personally proposed that the ceiling be raised to RM50 million, as the RM30 million limit was effectively the same as the total value of projects already under the jurisdiction of the Federal Treasury Office in Sabah and Sarawak,” he said in a video shared on his Facebook page today.
Armizan said that the Cabinet meeting on Jan 4, 2023, approved the Finance Ministry’s recommendation to formally recognise the Public Works Departments (JKR) and Irrigation and Drainage Departments (DID) of Sabah and Sarawak.
This recognition places the Sabah and Sarawak JKR as technical departments under Treasury Directive 182, enabling them to carry out the full scope of work - including procurement - for federal projects valued at RM50 million and below.
“No previous prime minister or federal government had been willing to cede project-implementation powers to the states, but Datuk Seri Anwar demonstrated his commitment by approving and implementing the recommendation within just one month of taking office,” he said.
-- BERNAMA
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