Sarawak - Revenue from LAND is due to the State

The State Government takes the position that Stamp duties for land which was taken away from us, mortgage or charge and other dealings in land, which are under the sole jurisdiction of the State by virtue of Item 2(2) in the State List, are part of the revenue from lands which is assigned to the State under Item 2 Part III of the Tenth Schedule. 

Revenue from land is due to the State. Any transaction relating to land be it transfer, mortgage, stamp duty thereof, the proceed must go to State and to that extent, the so called Federal Stamp Act is not applicable to us.

Such stamp duties, collected from land transactions registered under the Land Code, should be paid over to the State. 

The State Government will be making strong representations to the Federal Government to account for and paid over to the State, all stamp duties levied on dealings or transactions involving land. Constitutionally these revenues have been assigned to, and rightfully belonging to the State, should be paid into the State Consolidated Fund.

Adenan Satem

Chief Minister of Sarawak

15 Jun 2016

*“State List” means the Second List set out in the Ninth Schedule;

MALAYSIA 

Federal Constitution

PART III

SOURCES OF REVENUE ASSIGNED TO STATES

2. Revenue from lands, mines and forests.

On 24th June, 1954, when Sarawak was still a Colony, Queen Elizabeth II made the Sarawak (Alteration of Boundaries) Order in Council, the salient parts thereof reads, now this is very important:-

(a) The boundaries of the Colony of Sarawak are hereby extended to include the area of the continental shelf being the seabed and its subsoil which lies beneath the high seas contiguous to the continental waters of Sarawak. It means to include the territorial shelf Sarawak. That is what it means. It could be 200 miles, it could be 300 miles. There is a difference between the then boundary and the territorial boundary of shelf which ends and what is known as the continental slope where the

sea precipitately slope down instead of the plain continental shelf.

(b) Nothing in this order shall be deemed to affect the character as high seas of any waters above the said area as the continental shelf.

The Land Code of Sarawak which came into effect on 1st January, 1959 defines “state land” to include the seabed and subsoil which forms part of the continental shelf by virtue of the said Order made by the British Queen.