Anwar, who is also the finance minister, said the clarification would also cover the appeal concerning perceived flaws in the court’s judgment.
He said the decision was reached by consensus after a special Cabinet meeting to deliberate the matter.
“Following the special Cabinet meeting (yesterday) to review the Kota Kinabalu (High Court) judgment, we reached this decision after hours of deliberation, considering the views and proposals of each Cabinet member,” he said at the monthly gathering of the Prime Minister’s Department here today.
Following the government’s decision, the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) announced yesterday that negotiations with the Sabah government would start immediately.
The AGC said the federal government respected the principle of the 40% special grant enshrined in the Federal Constitution.
At the same meeting, the attorney-general also provided advice and views to the Cabinet regarding several defects in the judgment’s reasoning, including allegations that the federal government and Sabah government had abused their powers and breached constitutional obligations said to have involved both governments since 1974.
The AGC said the grounds of judgment also stated that the review after 2021 was unlawful, irrational and disproportionate.
On Oct 17, the Kota Kinabalu High Court ruled that the federal government had acted unlawfully and beyond its constitutional powers in failing to fulfil Sabah’s rights to 40% of federal revenue for the years of 1974 to 2021.
The decision was delivered by Justice Celestina Stuel Galid, who described the special grant between the federal government and Sabah government as “invalid, ultra vires and irrational” and in breach of the Federal Constitution.
The court also issued a mandamus order directing the federal government to conduct a revenue review with the Sabah government under Article 112D of the Federal Constitution to reinstate Sabah’s right to 40% of revenue for each financial year from 1974 to 2021.
The order required the review to be carried out within 90 days, while a mutual agreement between the two governments must be reached within 180 days of the date the order was issued (Oct 17).