SABAH is on the right track of having 90 per cent local workforce in the state federal civil service by 2020, said Special Tasks Minister Datuk Seri Teo Chee Kang.
Teo said there were 88,597 locals out of 112,347 federal public servants in the state, or about 79 per cent of the workforce.
As for teachers, locals make up 82.65 per cent of those who are serving in secondary schools and 87.58 per cent in primary schools.
There were also 82 locals heading 159 federal departments or agencies in the state, he said, adding that all these follow efforts to increase the number of locals in the federal service.
Teo said this in response to Datuk Lajim Ukin (Harapan Rakyat-Klias), who asked about actions taken by the Barisan Nasional-led government in restoring and upholding the rights of the Sabah people as enshrined in the Malaysia Agreement 1963.
“The state government is committed to address the need to restore the special rights of people of Sabah,” he said.
Teo, who is also the State Rights Committee chairman, agreed to a supplementary question by Lajim on certain heads of departments are only holding the positions, but did not really have the power in making decisions.
He said Lajim’s question was relevant and the government would look into empowering the people as genuine devolution power would minimise red tape.
Teo said when discussing about the agreement, substance was more important than the semantic or terminology used in the document.
“When it comes to the interpretation, it is not the form but the substance (of the document) that Sabah and Sarawak have special rights and cannot be questioned.
“We (Sabah) have the right to enact our own laws as stated in the state list in the Federal Constitution, rights on revenues and financial providence to the state,” he replied Datuk Wilfred Bumburing (Parti Cinta Sabah-Tamparuli), who raised the question on the definition of “federation” and “devolution” terms.
In November 2015, the state government has formed the State Rights Committee to study the agreement.
The committee has also invited 17 political parties to attend a public hearing here in January.
Their inputs were filed in the Sabah Special Rights report, which was handed to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak in May.
Among issues included in the report are the power to amend laws, return the rights of distributing electricity and gas to the state, abolishment of cabotage policy, administrative and appointment of judiciary officials at Sabah and Sarawak High Courts, and definition of “federation”.