KUCHING: Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri James Jemut Masing views that 2021 Budget does not reflect the equality of Malaya, Sarawak and Sabah.
He said it is a disproportionate allocation of fund as Sabah received RM5.1 billion and Sarawak received RM4.5 billion and compared to what Malaya received was much more than that.
“This shows that the 2021 Budget ignored the land size and the needs of the two eastern states in Borneo and for infrastructure development,” he told New Sarawak Tribune today.
Masing, who is also the Minister of Infrastructure and Ports Development said it has little regard to the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) understanding which resulted to the formation of Malaysia.
“The federation of Malaysia was formed by merger of three equal regions – Malaya, Sarawak and Sabah.
“Therefore, the allocation reflects inequality, but more like colonial power towards its colonies mindset,” he said.
When tabling the 2021 Budget in Parliament on Friday, Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz had announced that for next year, Sabah and Sarawak will received development expenditure of RM5.1 billion and RM4.5 billion respectively.
He said these allocations among others are for building and upgrading water, electricity, road infrastructure, health and education facilities.
