The Senallang assemblyman dismissed claims that by accepting the grant, his administration had abandoned Sabah’s entitlement to 40% of the federal revenue.

“We never refused to fight for Sabah’s rights, but at that time, the federal government was facing budget limitations.

“The national budget then was around RM200 billion, compared to RM400 billion today,” he said at a press conference in Kota Kinabalu, as reported by Sayang Sabah.

On Sunday, Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) deputy secretary-general Armizan Mohd Ali had questioned what Warisan had done, while in power, to reclaim 40% of the federal revenue collected from Sabah.

Armizan said Warisan had frequently criticised Barisan Nasional for maintaining Putrajaya’s special grant to Sabah at RM26.7 million for about 45 years.

However, when Shafie served as chief minister from 2018 to 2020, the amount was only increased to RM53.4 million under the 2020 budget.

He added that Shafie’s Cabinet had even agreed to accept the amount, as stated in a letter from the state treasury to the finance ministry dated Oct 18, 2019 – which he cited as an example of Warisan’s poor track record in defending Sabah’s rights.

Responding to the accusation, Shafie said the decision reflected the fiscal realities of the time, not a lack of commitment to Sabah’s rights.

“We considered the circumstances then, but that doesn’t mean we agreed to forgo Sabah’s rights. Let me be clear – we never agreed to surrender the 40% entitlement.

“We accepted the grant only because of concerns over the rising national debt, which had reached RM490 billion and needed to be managed within five years,” he said.