WHEN the heirs of the Sulu Sultanate seized Petronas’ assets in Azerbaijan, the issue was not about asset confiscation alone but of Sabah’s sovereignty too.
Lawyers to the claimants, through a bailiff, seized the holding companies of Petronas in Azerbaijian and Petronas South Causeses worth around US$2 bil.
It is obvious that assets were seized by the claimants as part of their larger and more fundamental claim on the sovereignty of Sabah, one of the principal territories of the Federation of Malaysia.
The seizure could have been temporarily set aside through the intervention of lawyers acting on behest of Malaysia and Petronas. However, the fact remains that heirs are claiming more than RM60 bil from Malaysia for the loss of Sabah.
This was especially after Malaysia discontinued the annual lease payment of RM5,300 in 2013, following the armed incursion in the area of Lahad Datu in eastern Sabah by a militant group acting on behest of the claimants of the Sulu sultanate.
In any case, the latest case has prompted the Government to come out with the idea of a task force, led by the minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law) Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar.
But I think that the setting up of task force by the Government might be a poor response to address the claims made by the descendants of the Sulu sultanate.
And I quite agree with UMNO vice-president Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin that the proper approach to this is by setting up a royal commission of inquiry (RCI).
The RCI, given its definition and power, might be an effective mechanism of the not just to address the exorbitant claims made by the descendants but to examine the entire matter of why the sovereignty of Sabah remains in question.
The commission can also critically examine the demands of the descendants of the Sulu sultanate over Sabah such as why was there need to cut off the annual payments to the claimants in 2013 and why was an arbitration process set in motion.
The problem here seems that long standing claims of the descendants over Sabah not being recognised or resolved by Malaysia that led to the seizure of Petronas assets overseas.
When it comes to the claims over Sabah by the descendants of Sulu sultanate, the matter seems to be shrouded in mystery. Even though Sabah is an integral part of the Federation of Malaysia, the claims by the descendants of the Sulu sultanate remains unresolved.
The fact that Malaysia was paying a yearly stipend to the descendants until it was stopped in 2013 seems to be an implicit recognition of the claims made.
Why was this not resolved at the time of the formation of Malaysia? Why was the need for Malaysia to pay yearly payments to the Sulu sultanate? Was this a recognition that Malaysia is yet to resolve the question of sovereignty over Sabah?
Or was it an admission that the sovereignty of Sabah might be contested?
This is about Sabah’s sovereignty
If the Philippines had no claims whatsoever on Sabah, then why the need to make yearly contributions to the Sulu sultanate? Was the incursion on Lahad Datu, in 2013, had anything to do with this?
Anyway, it is regrettable that Malaysia lost its sovereignty over the island of Pulau Batu Puteh in 2008. The absence of a broader epistemological approach was the main reason why we lost the case in the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
But by withdrawing from the appeal process, the island, once an integral part of the old Johor empire, was lost forever to Singapore.
I am not saying that similar fate will occur in the case of Sabah but the fact that claims of the descendants Sulu Sultanate having some international recognition should of great concern to Malaysia.
And that is why I say the idea of task force is a poor substitute in addressing matters of sovereignty. Surely, a case as important as the claims on Sabah merits an RCI.
Surely, a RCI will allow the Government to get to the bottom of the matter pertaining to sovereignty of Sabah. – July 16, 2022
