The home minister said Sanusi should focus on resolving disruptions in the state’s water supply and help the federal government tackle poverty in Kedah.

“It would be better for the future of Kedahans if we focus on productive issues rather than raising long-settled issues.

“I rarely hear the menteri besar doing that,” he said after officiating a MyLesen B2 programme with transport minister Loke Siew Fook here today.

“Instead, he keeps raising issues such as Kedah’s rights, claiming Penang belongs to Kedah, demanding compensation for it and wanting to stop supplying water to Penang.”

Loke said politicians like Sanusi should be aware that the Federal Constitution is the supreme law of the land.

“He does not understand the Federal Constitution. I suggest that he buys a copy and reads it,” he said.

The Federal Constitution lists Penang as one of Malaysia’s 13 states.

Yesterday, after signing a land and maritime boundary agreement between Kedah and Perlis, Sanusi once again claimed that Kedah owns Penang.

“From what I know, Penang is Kedah’s. So, there is no such thing as the Kedah-Penang border,” he was quoted by Sinar Harian as saying.

Penang island and Province Wellesley (now Seberang Perai) were leased by the Kedah sultanate to the British in 1791 for 10,000 Spanish dollars.

Historical accounts state that the East India Company eventually acquired the land from the sultan of Kedah, in return for military protection and a yearly payment in perpetuity.

The yearly payment, now an honorarium, had been set at RM10,000 for decades, but was raised to RM10 million a year by Putrajaya in 2018.

Sanusi, however, has said he regards the honorarium as “lease payment” and has asked that it be raised to RM100 million a year since Penang was “doing well”.