In a brief written parliamentary reply, finance minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz said the ministry was still studying the legal aspects pertaining to the proposal to appoint representatives from Sabah and Sarawak to LHDN.

He was responding to a question from Lukanisman Awang Sauni (GPS-Sibuti), who asked if the government was considering Sarawak’s candidate for the board.

Lukanisman said the provision for a Sarawakian representative on the board was recorded in Article 21(1) of the Inter-Governmental Committee Report 1962 (IGC), a key document leading up to the formation of Malaysia through the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).

Sarawak premier Abang Johari Openg had said on July 11 that the state had submitted the name of its candidate to sit on the board.

Abang Johari said having a representative on the board would ensure Sarawak was kept informed of how much revenue the country generated and the amount it should be receiving for its annual special grant.

Sarawak had previously stressed that the special grant must be specified with a reasonable formula based on the federal government’s annual revenue, and not a fixed amount.

On July 12, Sabah also said it had submitted the name of its candidate for LHDN to the prime minister and the finance ministry.