Sarikei PKR chief Bruce Yee said attempts to politically escalate the issue could backfire given the long-standing legal framework governing Petronas’s operations in Sarawak and the breadth of commercial agreements tied to it.
He cited the stance of Sarawak premier Abang Johari Openg, who has not objected to Petronas naming both the federal and Sarawak governments as respondents in its court application, while advising all parties to await judicial clarification.
In a Facebook post, Yee said the premier’s position reflected an appreciation of historical context, including decisions made by earlier Sarawak leaders.
He pointed to the late Abdul Rahman Yakub, who served as Sarawak’s chief minister from 1970 to 1981 and later as governor, and how he was among those who supported the idea of Malaysia establishing a national oil company which later became Petronas.
He said Rahman and other leaders of that era did not oppose the passage of the Petroleum Development Act 1974 (PDA) in Parliament, a law that vested ownership and control of petroleum resources in Petronas and has remained in force for nearly five decades.
“Over that period, Petronas has entered into numerous domestic and international agreements premised on the PDA,” Yee said, adding that unwinding or bypassing this structure through political means would expose governments and third parties to legal and contractual challenges.
He criticised the use of terms like “divorce” and other threat-laden language by certain quarters, saying such rhetoric would not resolve the dispute and risked damaging Sarawak’s reputation for stability and cohesion.
Yee also responded to law and institutional reform minister Azalina Othman Said’s interpretation of oil and gas ownership under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), saying such statements added to the confusion.
While stressing that Sarawak’s autonomy under MA63 must be respected and defended, Yee said this needed to be balanced with preserving Petronas’s role as a national institution and global energy player.
“The prudent course is de-escalation,” he said. “Avoid divisive rhetoric, allow the courts to determine the legal position, and reduce the risk of prolonged uncertainty.”
He added that a calm, legally grounded approach would better protect the interests of Sarawak, the federal government and Petronas, while limiting wider repercussions for Malaysia’s oil and gas industry.