Issued by:
Sabah Sarawak Rights – Australia New Zealand (SSRANZ) & Borneo Plight in Malaysia Foundation (BoPiMaFo)
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Sarawak Rights – Australia New Zealand (SSRANZ) and the Borneo Plight in Malaysia Foundation (BoPiMiFo) express full support for the organisers and participants of the upcoming “Sarawak Petroleum, Oil & Gas” Press Conference at the Borneo Cultures Museum on 9 November 2025.
This event marks a pivotal moment in Sarawak’s decades-long struggle to reclaim its oil and gas sovereignty and to seek justice for the systematic exploitation entrenched by the Petroleum Development Act 1974 (PDA74).
PDA74 — A TOOL OF ECONOMIC PLUNDER
The control of Sarawak’s and Sabah’s oil and gas resources was never an agreed term under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63). In fact, the then-Malayan government deliberately avoided addressing this issue after Brunei’s open rejection of Malaya’s attempts to take control of Brunei’s petroleum wealth — a key reason Brunei refused to sign MA63.
The enactment of the PDA74 therefore violated the fundamental intent of both MA63 and the Malaysian Federation itself. It was enacted without the consent of Sarawak or Sabah, in direct contravention of Article 161E(2)(a) of the Federal Constitution, Article VIII of MA63, and the Oil Mining Ordinance 1958 (OMO).
By unlawfully vesting ownership of all petroleum in PETRONAS, the Act stripped both states of their natural wealth and empowered the federal centre at the expense of the resource-producing territories — a textbook case of post-colonial economic plunder.
The Federal Government also failed to comply with Article 76(1)(b) of the Federal Constitution, which requires consultation with state governments before enacting laws affecting their rights — making the PDA74 doubly unconstitutional.
While this conference rightly focuses on Sarawak’s oil and gas rights, SSRANZ and BoPiMaFo emphasises that Sabah’s parallel denial of its revenue and resource entitlements reflects the same entrenched federal exploitation. Both struggles arise from the same unlawful foundation — the PDA74 and the void Malaysia Agreement 1963 — which have together institutionalised economic subjugation and political inequality since 1963.
This injustice is part of a wider pattern that began in 1974 — the same year Sabah’s 40% revenue entitlement was abruptly terminated. Half a century later, despite the Sabah High Court ruling affirming this right, Putrajaya continues to delay compliance, citing administrative excuses.
Recent statements that the Prime Minister may “review” the court’s decision raise a grave constitutional question: When was the Prime Minister given judicial powers? Such defiance of court orders underscores the deep erosion of federalism and the rule of law.
VOID FOUNDATION — VOID LAW
SSRANZ and BOPIMAFO reiterate that Malaysia’s formation was not an act of decolonisation, but a colonial transfer of two non-self-governing territories — North Borneo (Sabah) and Sarawak — to Malaya.
Article IV of MA63 authorised Britain “to relinquish sovereignty and jurisdiction to the Federation of Malaya”, confirming that the process was annexation, not a union of equals. This breached UN Resolutions 1514 and 1541, which require a genuine act of self-determination prior to any integration.
As no such act of self-determination ever occurred, Malaysia’s legal foundation is void ab initio under international law. Consequently, all derivative laws — including the PDA74 — are constitutionally defective and lack legitimacy.
If MA63 was void, Malaysia’s sovereignty over Sarawak and Sabah is void; and if that sovereignty is void, the PDA74 is an unlawful act of economic occupation.
VIOLATION OF INTERNATIONAL LAW
The PDA74 directly contravenes UN Resolution 1803 (XVII) on Permanent Sovereignty over Natural Resources, which affirms every people’s right to control and benefit from their natural wealth.
By continuing to seize Sarawak’s and Sabah’s petroleum wealth, the Federal Government stands in violation of that Resolution and of the principles of federal equality.
Moreover, by disregarding Sarawak’s territorial boundaries as defined in the Sarawak (Alteration of Boundaries) Order in Council 1954 and the Oil Mining Ordinance 1958, the Federal Government has unlawfully appropriated Sarawak’s continental shelf and maritime resources — a breach that undermines both Malaysia’s federal integrity and its international standing.
THE WAY FORWARD
SSRANZ and BOPIMAFO call upon all Sarawakians to unite behind these lawful and moral demands:
- Immediate repeal of the Petroleum Development Act 1974 (PDA74);
- Restitution and compensation for petroleum revenues unlawfully expropriated since 1974;
- Recognition of Sarawak’s sovereign rights over its onshore and offshore petroleum resources; and
- An international review of MA63 before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to determine the legality of Malaysia’s formation and to facilitate a proper decolonisation process under UN supervision.
SSRANZ and BOPIMAFO also reaffirm that Sabah’s struggle for the restoration of its 40% revenue entitlement and control over its natural wealth forms an inseparable part of the same broader movement for justice, equality, and self-determination.
CONCLUSION
Sarawak’s oil and gas struggle is part of its broader fight for justice and self-determination. Half a century of constitutional deception has shown that true autonomy cannot exist within a federation built on unequal foundations.
SSRANZ and BOPIMAFO reaffirm their unwavering solidarity with the people of Sarawak — and with the people of Sabah — in their peaceful and lawful pursuit of sovereignty over their resources and their future.
Sabah Sarawak Rights – Australia New Zealand (SSRANZ)
Borneo Plight in Malaysia Foundation (BOPIMAFO)
