State government to establish Sarawak-Owned Enterprise that will be run commercially, free from General Orders of Civil Service

BINTULU, Dec 6 2025: The state government is now moving towards establishing Sarawak-Owned Enterprise (SOE) that will be run commercially, just like the corporate sector. 

Caption: Premier Abang Johari Openg says those who can't perform will be fired.

Premier Abang Johari Openg said  SOE’s system is  detached from the normal the General Orders of the State Civil Service.

“If they perform they are there, if they make money they decide on the bonus. But then if you don’t perform, you are fired,” he said in his speech at the signing of  the Shareholders’ Agreement  between PMB Aluminium Sdn Bhd and  Bintulu Capital Sdn Bhd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Bintulu Development Authority  (BDA).

“That is the system that we want to establish in SOE. They are not bound by the General Orders, but based on performances.

“If you have this entity moving forward, with new ideas, new ways to manage business, then the whole economy will come up.

“It is our GPS’ conviction that Sarawak will become the “Star of Asean”. We should be there because we have all the basic ingredients in terms of resources,” he said.

He added what Sarawak needs now is the human capital.

“That is why we are giving free tertiary education to Sarawak students studying in state-owned higher institutions starting next year,” he said.

Abang Johari said the state government is focusing on producing chips, explaining the reasons for the state to get the right human capital, and at the same, increasing productivity.