Why have the sons of the second and third Prime Ministers turned their backs on their father’s joint legacy on 5% oil royalty to the states?


End-game to the silencing of Umno veteran leader Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah or his expulsion from Umno.

This is the import and intent of the gag order announced by Umno vice president Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein on Umno members on the Kelantan oil royalty issue which could affect the party’s image.

It is no more a question of who and what is historically right or wrong but who has the present power to impose his views on the country at the moment, right or wrong.

What the second and third Prime Ministers, Tun Razak and Tun Hussein Onn, intended some 35 years ago, as ordering Razaleigh as the first Petronas Chairman “to design the Petroleum Development Act in such a way that the Malay heartland states of Kelantan, Terengganu, Johor and especially his beloved Pahang, would benefit directly from offshore oil beyond 3 nautical miles through the mechanism of 5 per cent cash payments made directly to the state consolidated fund” (Razaleigh’s statement) do not matter today.

Even Razak’s categorical and unequivocal commitment in Parliament on Nov. 12, 1975 in reply to my parliamentary question that “Under the agreement, each state will receive 5 per cent of the value of petroleum found and extracted from each of the states, whether onshore or offshore, that is sold by Petronas or agencies or contractors” is now regarded as utterly of no consequence or value.

Can the sons of the second and third Prime Ministers of Malaysia explain why they have turned their backs on their father’s joint legacy of 5% oil royalty to the states and instead embraced the fourth Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir’s distortion and violation of the petroleum agreements with the various states?

Najib and Hishammuddin should not allow political expediency and considerations, even Umno’s survival, to dishonour their father’s joint legacy to give 5% oil royalty to the states, particularly Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and Johore.

Those who are baying for Razaleigh’s blood, like Umno Supreme Council member Dr. Mohd Puad Zarkashi demanding for action to be taken against the Gua Musang Member of Parliament for speaking out on the Kelantan oil royalty issue, have personal political axes to grind.

They are neither interested in historic rights and wrongs nor the legacies of the first three Prime Ministers of Malaysia.

Puad, for example, is hoping that in the impending Cabinet reshuffle which Najib had long been mulling over, he would make the lightning elevation to become full Cabinet Minister although he is not yet a full year as a Deputy Minister – allowing him to make a record-quick ascent up the Cabinet ladder.

There should be no gag order on the legacy of Razak and Hussein on the oil royalty issue for the states.

What Najib should do is to present a White Paper on the oil royalty issue on the first day of the forthcoming meeting of Parliament on 16th March 2010 and to schedule a special parliamentary debate on the issue.

In the White Paper, Najib should declassify all documents and papers to fully explain why for 35 years the Federal Government honoured the states’ rights to 5% oil royalty with regular payments to Terengganu, Sabah and Sarawak and the legal history of the change of stand of the Federal Government in 2000 to withdraw such recognition and to pay instead “wang ehsan” (compassionate payments) to the Terengganu state government – all because of PAS capture of the state in the 1999 general elections.

  1. #1 by son of perpaduan on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 12:44 pm

    All because of power create money and money buy power. Therefore, whoever it is, next generation who will inherit and bear the burden of debts repayment till eternity.

  2. #2 by MGR1940 on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 12:47 pm

    YB Lim, These people do not know the meaning of the word ‘history’ and respect one.

  3. #3 by k1980 on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 1:01 pm

    Had Brunei joined Bolehland, its sultan would have to beg for wang ehsan of RM10,000 a year instead of the 100% oil royalty it is getting niow

  4. #4 by chengho on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 1:08 pm

    Kit,
    why u purposely put the word;
    that the Malay heartland states of Kelantan, Terengganu, Johor and especially his beloved Pahang, would benefit directly from offshore oil beyond 3 nautical miles through the mechanism of 5 per cent cash……….
    We are beyond skin color , just put the word ‘ the east coast of west Malaysia’…instead of Malay heartland? that why the rakyat always think Dap for chinese..

  5. #5 by sheriff singh on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 1:19 pm

    “It is no more a question of who and what is historically right or wrong but who has the present power to impose his views on the country at the moment, right or wrong.”

    How true. This is the state of the country at the moment. Just change one or two words and this statement can have applicability in a variety of situations. For example.

    “It is no more a question of who and what is LEGALLY right or wrong but who has the present power to impose his (THEIR) views on the country at the moment, right or wrong.” Nizar?

  6. #6 by dagen on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 1:41 pm

    Good one by k1980 @ #3!

  7. #7 by sheriff singh on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 1:55 pm

    Actually Brunei wanted to give 5% Wang Ehsan to KL if they were to join Malaysia. They smart. Now they keep 100%.

  8. #8 by Winston on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 1:59 pm

    The root cause of our problems, for decades, is the couldn’t care less and self-serving UMNO/BN government!
    If you want a better future, just dump the UMNO/BN government!

  9. #9 by Bigjoe on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 2:30 pm

    It boils down to bane of entitlement. These unworthy or prodigal progenies feel entitled NOT to have to face reality and be accountable. They feel entitled to use underhanded tactics and schemes and no obligation to have decent standard of personal behaviour and ethics.

    If you can’t talk about oil and the law, what can you talk about? If you can’t talk about oil and law, what hope is there to talk about race, religion, crime and corruption?

    The lack of feeling ridiculous with all these manouvering and scheming is, well, ridiculous. These are things we tell our CHILDREN NOT to do!!!

  10. #10 by donplaypuks on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 3:21 pm

    Why? The answer is quite simple where billions of $ are concerned. They are not intrested in the law, justice or what’s fair!!

    They want to control the money so that projects can be awarded by non-tendered out direct negotiations with their croneys. Remember Crystal Mosque and Monsoon Cup in Trengganu?

    And who’s to know if some of this oil money then finds it’s way mysteriously as legal donations to a certain Party’s coffers.

    Simple game which is the hall mark of rent seekers and Ali Babas!!

    dpp
    We are all of 1 race, the Human Race

  11. #11 by wanderer on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 4:08 pm

    How to give la….the intended money for the States have already flowed sideways….into somebody’s wallet/s!
    like to make a guess who were the beneficiaries of these haram money?

  12. #12 by johnnypok on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 5:52 pm

    I wonder why Ah Lar allow them to commit all sorts of crimes??

  13. #13 by Bigjoe on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 6:59 pm

    I think when you look at what is happening, it is no less than ‘Blitzkrieg’ by UMNO/BN and machinery/partners – they intend to hit PR in a coordinated fashion in as many ways as possible to shatter the PR. And the idea is to hit at PKR which they think is what holds the coalition together.

    The whole idea is wave after wave of attacks.

    What do you do under a Blitzkrieg attack? You don’t attack it upfront for one thing. You hunker down to defend it or you circle around and attack from behind.

    PR need to circle around and attack. Protest against the GST is a good idea. But if I were PR, I bus a bunch of Kelantanese to come to KL to protest over the oil royalty issue. I would get the fisherman who are being forced to buy boxes to throw smelly fishes at Putrajaya. Take the fight to them. I would get the Indian to go after Samy Vellu trying to take over AIMST..

  14. #14 by lee wee tak_ on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 - 11:43 pm

    DAP’s 2010 budge enlightened me to a very critical fact that explain properly why there is so much “unity” within BN rank – almost all the revenue collected is within the control by a CEO cum CFO.

    This is where the single biggest water tap sits and by golly like hell he is gonna give it up;

  15. #15 by DCLXVI on Thursday, 4 March 2010 - 1:48 am

    chengho: “Kit,
    why u purposely put the word;
    that the Malay heartland states of Kelantan, Terengganu, Johor and especially his beloved Pahang, would benefit directly from offshore oil beyond 3 nautical miles through the mechanism of 5 per cent cash……….
    We are beyond skin color , just put the word ‘ the east coast of west Malaysia’…instead of Malay heartland? that why the rakyat always think Dap for chinese..”

    At least YB LKS had shown respect to position of the Malay people in those states.
    Anyway, the colour of crude oil is black, as in ‘black gold’, and the colour of money from oil.. well that depends on the currency & denomination…

  16. #16 by boh-liao on Thursday, 4 March 2010 - 4:31 pm

    Don’t foget d other son of d 4th PM

  17. #17 by lopez on Thursday, 4 March 2010 - 11:35 pm

    cry over spilled milk…..why did these things not brought to the people’s knowledge then…why now…is there someone or some force preventing these being disclosed earlier.

    ahhhhh we are not equal , now it is clear…..very clear…
    where got equal one….you see your fingers…

    so dont bluff yourself…..birds of feathers flocks together…

    I know chinatown never get the same equal treatment but treated more like outsiders.
    At times even try to unchinatown it too.

  18. #18 by johnnypok on Friday, 5 March 2010 - 3:01 am

    The people of Kelantan should demand for 50/50 sharing of all the oil revenue, while Sabah and Sarawak deserve 95%.

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