Unlocking nation’s oil resources a ‘team effort’, says Mahathir

Free Malaysia Today

Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad says Malaysia’s prosperity was built on federal–state cooperation.   Read More: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2025/11/12/unlocking-nations-oil-resources-a-team-effort-says-mahathir   Laporan Lanjut: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/bahasa/tempatan/2025/11/12/kekayaan-minyak-negara-hasil-usaha-bersama-kata-dr-m   Free Malaysia Today is an independent, bi-lingual news portal with a focus on Malaysian current affairs.    Subscribe to our channel - http://bit.ly/2Qo08ry   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Check us out at https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com  Follow FMT on Facebook: https://bit.ly/49JJoo5  Follow FMT on Dailymotion: https://bit.ly/2WGITHM  Follow FMT on X: https://bit.ly/48zARSW  Follow FMT on Instagram: https://bit.ly/48Cq76h  Follow FMT on TikTok : https://bit.ly/3uKuQFp  Follow FMT Berita on TikTok: https://bit.ly/48vpnQG  Follow FMT Telegram - https://bit.ly/42VyzMX  Follow FMT LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/42YytEb  Follow FMT Lifestyle on Instagram: https://bit.ly/42WrsUj  Follow FMT on WhatsApp: https://bit.ly/49GMbxW  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Download FMT News App:  Google Play – http://bit.ly/2YSuV46  App Store – https://apple.co/2HNH7gZ  Huawei AppGallery - https://bit.ly/2D2OpNP   #FMTNews

Transcript

00:00Sabah and Sarawak must remember that before you joined the Federation,

00:05before you became a part of Malaysia, they were very poor countries.

00:10And the oil was not being produced at that time.

00:13It is only after they joined Malaysia that we were able to exploit the gas potential,

00:20the oil potential of Sabah and Sarawak.

00:23So they become rich because they joined the Federation.

00:26Dr. Mahathir Mohamad says Malaysia's prosperity has been built on a partnership

00:32between the resource-rich regions of Sabah and Sarawak and the federal government,

00:37which provided expertise, capital and infrastructure to unlock their potential.

00:42Speaking to FMT, the former Prime Minister said Malaysia's petroleum wealth

00:46was not discovered or monetized by either side on its own,

00:50but through a combination of natural endowment and national expertise.

00:54According to Mahathir, Sabah and Sarawak were among the poorest states

00:59at the time of Malaysia's formation.

01:01Sabah and Sarawak were very poor states.

01:04They were far behind in terms of development the states of the peninsula.

01:11But because of federation and allocation of funds from the federal government

01:17to the state, Sabah and Sarawak has made progress.

01:22Commenting further on the state of federalism today,

01:25Mahathir said Malaysians must not mistake Sarawak's current success

01:29as happening despite federal government policies.

01:32Instead, he said, it happened because of those policies.

01:36Sarawak must remember that at the beginning,

01:41the federation helped Sarawak.

01:43Now the time has come for Sarawak to help the federation

01:48because of the help given by the federation has enriched Sarawak.

01:54Mahathir stressed that the 1963 Malaysia Agreement

01:57outlines not only the special rights of Sabah and Sarawak,

02:00but also those of the federal government.

02:02In a federation, we have to accept that certain power

02:10is given to the federation which the state must recognise.

02:18Certain other powers are given to the state

02:21which the federal government must recognise.

02:24But there are also conjoined authorities on certain issues

02:29and this will involve the government's working together.

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