No way Sarawak can claim full ownership of oil and gas resources unless PDA74 is repealed, says senior lawyer

 

By Simon Peter

KUCHING, March 27, 2025: The only way for Sarawak to fully and legally claim full ownership of oil and gas resources is for the state government to seek the removal of the Petroleum Development Act 1974 (PDA74), a senior lawyer contended today.
As Sarawakians, we all have rights to our oil and gas which we lost since PDA74 was passed by the federal parliament - Voon Lee Shan (picture, left)

He said as long as PDA74  is still being enforced there is no way Sarawak can claim full ownership of the oil and gas resources.

He said this is because PDA74 over-rides Oil Mining Ordinance 1958 (OMO58) as indicated by Article 75 of the Federal Constitution.

“It is clear that under Article 75 when there is a conflict between the state law with an Act of Parliament, the Act of Parliament takes precedence over the state law,” Voon, who is also Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) president, said in a statement.

“It is now the obligation of the state government to seek federal parliament or the prime minister to repeal PDA74 and other relevant Acts of Parliament so that Sarawak and Sabah could take back their oil and gas resources,” he said.

He added there should be no more playing politics about this Sarawak rights by  leaving PA74 to become an enforceable law to vest Sarawak’s oil and gas in the hands of Petroliam Nasional Berhad (Petronas).

He agreed that OMO was enacted in 1958 before Malaysia was formed in 1963 while PDA was passed by Parliament in 1974.

He said PDA74 was passed to take and vest Sarawak’s oil and gas resources in the of Petronas. 

He said it does not mean that any Act of Parliament passed  during emergency would automatically be repealed after the removal or lifting of the Emergency Ordinance, citing PDA74 as an example that continue to exist.

“It  is irrelevant whether or not PDA74 was drafted in secret or was passed with or without the approval or consent of Sarawak Legislature or the then Chief Minister Tun Rahman Yakub, had been tricked, coerced or otherwise on freewill, signed the oil and gas resources away during strange times, but, the fact is clear that PDA74 as it is now, gives the full authority in perpetuity to take these resources away,” he argued.

“As Sarawakians, we all have rights to our oil and gas which we lost since PDA74 was passed by the federal parliament.  

“We also know the intention or purpose of PDA74 and we also know that PDA74 could likely be unconstitutional, but it is still a good law until repealed by Parliament or declared by a competent court that it is unconstitutional,” he said.

 Voon argued that the oil and gas pumped by Petronas from Sarawak was God’s given gift to Sarawak, not to Petronas or the federal government or Malaya.

He said he could not understand why the state government still does not believe this and still seems reluctant to take everything that is  in the hands of Petronas back for Sarawak.