Kota Kinabalu, 20 January 2026: Kapayan Assemblyman Chin Tek Ming welcomed the statement by Datuk Ewon Benedict agreeing with his earlier call for the Federal Government to withdraw its appeal against the High Court’s decision on Sabah’s 40% revenue entitlement.
“I was the first to urge the Chief Minister and the Sabah Government to formally request the Federal Government to withdraw the appeal if it is truly sincere about restoring Sabah’s constitutional rights and entitlements. I raised this during the first sitting of the State Legislative Assembly held from 15 to 17 December last year. Datuk Ewon was present and would have been fully aware of this proposal. In fact, I had already made this suggestion publicly even before the recent political campaigns,” Chin said.
“Since Datuk Ewon, as President of UPKO, has now stated this position openly at the party’s 17th Triennial Delegates’ Conference, I hope he is serious about it. Hopefully, there will not be another U-turn,” Chin added.
Chin further expressed concern over the lack of transparency and public updates regarding discussions between the Federal Government and the Sabah Government on compliance with the High Court’s judgment.
“To date, there has been no clear information provided to the public on the status or progress of these meetings. Sabahans deserve to know what concrete steps are being taken to enforce the court’s decision,” he said.
Commenting on the statement by Nominated Assemblyman Datuk Roger Chin regarding the slow compliance by the Federal Government after more than 90 days since the ruling, Chin stressed that no stay of execution has been granted, and only a notice of appeal has been filed.
“There is no stay of execution, and the timeline towards the 180-day compliance period is running. Therefore, the Sabah Law Society (SLS), as the applicant in this case, should proceed with enforcement proceedings. There is no legal justification to wait any longer. Sabahans have already waited far too long,” he said.
“I urge Datuk Roger Chin, as a former President of the Sabah Law Society, to seriously engage with the current SLS leadership and legal team to pursue the next course of action, instead of allowing the matter to remain in limbo. After all, the Federal Government has already postponed indefinitely the meeting that was scheduled for 19 December 2025. What exactly are we waiting for?” Chin questioned.
Chin concluded by stating that failure by the Federal Government to comply with the High Court’s order within the stipulated timeline would amount to a serious breach of accountability. “If the Federal Government fails to comply with the court order within the specified period, then, in the spirit of accountability and respect for the rule of law, the Cabinet should resign,” he said.
By
Chin Tek Ming
