Universiti Malaya’s Awang Azman Pawi dismissed GPS assemblyman Hamzah Brahim’s warning of a “potential downfall” of the unity government as merely a “populist statement”.
James Chin of the University of Tasmania is of the view that Hamzah’s colleagues in the GPS are unlikely to share his views.
Hamzah had, on Nov 14, criticised Petronas for what he claimed was the national oil corporation’s “push-and-pull” approach in finalising a gas distribution deal that would see Petroleum Sarawak Bhd (Petros) become the state’s sole gas aggregator.
He warned Putrajaya against allowing Petronas’s “pride and greed” to contribute to the “potential downfall” of the Madani government.
Awang Azman pointed out that representatives from Sarawak, Petronas and the federal government are now in negotiations.
“A professional official representative would not label others with terms such as ‘proud’ and ‘greedy’,” he told FMT.
He said that while it is natural for Sarawak to want to strengthen its oil and gas rights by enforcing its Oil and Mining Ordinance (OMO) 1958 and by challenging federal laws, it would not want to risk jeopardising ties with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
“GPS has traditionally been pragmatic and is using its influence in federal politics to champion Sarawak’s interests,” he added.
Under the Petroleum Development Act 1974, Petronas has ownership of all the oil and gas in the country. However, Sarawak has recently sought greater control over the same resources, within its borders and in its continental shelf, through Petros.
In July, Sarawak announced that it wanted Petros to take over the buying and selling of gas in the state, giving Petronas three months to resolve all gas distribution issues with the state-owned oil company.
On Oct 31, Sarawak Premier Abang Johari Openg said the dispute had been resolved, with Petronas agreeing in principle to Petros serving as the sole gas aggregator for Sarawak. However, Petronas disputed this, saying discussions were still ongoing.
Chin said that if Petronas cannot resolve the issue, Abang Johari will have to talk to Anwar because Petronas reports directly to the prime minister.
He told FMT that Petronas would be on the losing end if the dispute goes to court as Sarawak’s rights to those resources would be protected under its OMO.
“That gives Sarawak the ability to negotiate with Petronas,” he added.
Another analyst, Jayum Jawan of Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, said that based on the historical ties between the two sides, GPS is unlikely to leave the unity government even if Petronas does not budge.
He pointed out that the Sarawak government has been a partner of the federal government since 1963 and its representatives at the federal level lack the experience of sitting on the opposition bench.
“Its leaders would be hard-pressed to sever ties with the federal government now,” he told FMT.