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PKR vice-president Roland Engan said Sabah and Sarawak must immediately stop all logging activities if they intend to claim the largest share of the federal government’s carbon tax revenue.

He said the revenue should not be viewed merely as compensation for the two states’ geographical advantage, but should instead be tied to a clear commitment to environmental conservation.

“If East Malaysia wants to be compensated for serving as the country’s primary carbon sink, then those areas must be actively protected. We cannot demand 70% of the carbon tax revenue while at the same time allowing the forests that create that value to continue being destroyed,” he said in a statement.

Roland was responding to Sarawak Premier Abang Johari Openg’s remarks yesterday that Sabah and Sarawak should receive at least 70% of any carbon tax revenue collected because both states serve as Malaysia’s main carbon absorption regions. Abang Johari said, apart from Pahang, no other states in Malaysia have forest cover extensive enough to absorb carbon on a similar scale. He added that Sarawak’s vast peatlands and mangrove forests are capable of storing several times more carbon than most other forest ecosystems.

Roland, who is also PKR Sarawak chairman, proposed that the distribution of carbon tax revenue to Sabah and Sarawak be linked to a zero-deforestation key performance indicator (KPI), supported by a robust and transparent monitoring system.

He said the financial incentives should be used directly to protect and restore existing natural habitats, rather than offsetting continued commercial logging or ongoing land conversion, Free Malaysia Today (FMT).

Roland said both states must also demonstrate that their forest management practices meet international standards before they qualify for a larger share of the federal carbon tax revenue.

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KUALA LUMPUR — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (picture) today stressed that the government has never barred programmes from being held in Federal Land Development Authority (FELDA) settlements, including those organised by state governments, provided they do not involve the use of federal government machinery for election campaigning.

He said state governments are free to organise events in FELDA areas, but election laws prohibit the use of government machinery, including FELDA resources, for campaign purposes.

“There is absolutely nothing preventing a menteri besar from entering a FELDA settlement and organising his own programme.

“If a state government wants to issue land titles, that is its prerogative, although it must still comply with election regulations. The restriction is not on the programme itself, but on using FELDA machinery for campaigning,” he said during the Minister’s Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat today.

Responding to Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin (PN-Larut), Anwar also denied issuing any directive to cancel the FELDA Settlers’ Day programme, which had been scheduled to take place in Kluang, Johor, on June 20 and 21.

The Prime Minister said the MADANI Government remains committed to improving the welfare of FELDA communities through a range of initiatives aimed at revitalising settlements that had, in his view, suffered from poor management in the past.

Among the measures introduced are the establishment of dialysis centres in FELDA settlements and the expansion of development facilities through federal government agencies.

“In the past, many FELDA settlements did not receive the attention they deserved and were left behind in rural development projects. That is why Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and I decided to provide far better facilities than before,” he said. — BERNAMA 

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by HIDAYATH HISHAM

THE new Malaysian International Passport will have 94 security features, almost double the 49 features in the current version, as the government strengthens protection against forgery, alteration and misuse of travel documents.

Immigration Department director-general Datuk Zakaria Shaaban said the new passport structure will take effect from July 1, 2026, with Malaysians aged 18 and above given the option to apply for either a five-year or 10-year passport.

“We have improved and upgraded the security features. Previously, there were 49 security features, and for the new passport, we have increased them to 94.

“This makes it safer and more difficult to forge,” he told reporters after the launch today.

The upgraded security features include visual, hidden and forensic elements, as well as technologies such as guilloche, latent image, rainbow printing, line width modulation, hologram and ultraviolet printing.

The new passport also complies with international standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization, ensuring Malaysia’s passport remains recognised as a secure travel document globally.

Zakaria said the new passport will be issued in stages, starting with 14 passport issuing offices nationwide from July 1 under the first phase.

“On July 1 we will begin at 14 passport offices nationwide, mainly state passport offices and UTCs,” he said.

He said the rollout will continue in phases throughout July and August before covering more Immigration offices across the country.

The phased implementation will eventually cover 71 passport offices nationwide to ensure a smooth operational transition.

Under the new structure, the fee for a 10-year passport is set at RM350, while the five-year passport fee remains at RM200.

Zakaria said the 10-year option will give applicants a saving of RM50 compared with renewing a five-year passport twice over the same period.

He added that passport demand currently averages about 180,000 to 220,000 applications a month, and demand is expected to increase slightly following the launch of the new passport.

However, he advised Malaysians not to rush to replace their existing passports if the documents are still valid.

“We ask Malaysians not to rush to change their passports. If they still have a passport and it has a long validity period, there is no need to change now. Wait until it expires, then renew it,” he said, adding that existing passports remain valid until six months before expiry.

The new passport will feature the Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing butterfly as its new main identity, replacing the hibiscus icon used in the current Malaysian International Passport.

The department said the new icon reflects Malaysia’s biodiversity and natural heritage, while the passport also carries elements of national history, cultural heritage and the constitutional monarchy system.

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by HIDAYATH HISHAM

THE government does not neglect or sideline any state in the distribution of federal allocations, with funding channelled based on development needs and urgent priorities.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said federal allocations to states had increased under the MADANI government, particularly for states requiring support for infrastructure, flood mitigation, poverty reduction and basic facilities.

“It is completely untrue to claim that certain states have been neglected or sidelined,” he told the Dewan Rakyat today.

Anwar was replying to Sri Aman MP Datuk Seri Doris Sophia Brodi, who asked for clarification over claims that federal allocations to state governments were unfair and insufficient compared with the revenue collected from those states.

He said all states had received higher allocations than before, although Selangor and Penang recorded lower federal spending compared with the average tax revenue collected from both states due to their strategic economic positions.

For Selangor, Anwar said the average tax revenue collected by the Federal Government from 2023 to 2025 stood at RM43.6 billion, while federal expenditure in the state amounted to RM15 billion over the same period.

For Penang, the average revenue collected during the same period stood at RM10.7 billion, compared with federal spending of RM7.9 billion.

Anwar said the government had given greater focus to states that required more federal support, especially for flood mitigation, road upgrades, the Pan Borneo Highway in Sabah and Sarawak, water infrastructure and key junction projects.

He said Kelantan recorded average revenue of RM946 million from 2023 to 2025, while federal spending in the state reached RM8.9 billion.

Kedah recorded RM3.7 billion in average revenue during the same period, compared with RM9.5 billion in federal spending.

For Terengganu, Anwar said revenue stood at RM2.4 billion, including oil revenue, while federal expenditure amounted to RM7.8 billion.

Perlis recorded RM419 million in revenue against RM2.2 billion in federal spending, while Johor recorded about RM14 billion in revenue and RM16 billion in federal spending.

“The MADANI government has given the highest allocations to states such as Kedah, Terengganu and Kelantan compared with before,” he said.

Anwar said the government’s approach was based on urgent needs, including poverty eradication, infrastructure upgrades, schools and support for poor and marginalised communities.

He said Putrajaya had also increased allocations through mechanisms such as the Ecological Fiscal Transfer, state grants and capitation grants, which had been announced in the presence of premiers, menteris besar and chief ministers.

On Sarawak, Anwar said relations between the Federal Government and the state government had reached a historic stage following the handover of Bintulu Port to Sarawak.

He said the Sarawak government had paid RM1.8 billion in cash to the Federal Government as part of the arrangement, marking the first time a state government had made such a cash payment to Putrajaya.

Anwar said negotiations with Sarawak on a higher special grant were still ongoing, following the Federal Government’s decision to raise Sabah’s interim special grant to RM1.5 billion.

He said an increase for Sarawak was justified under the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963.

“Negotiations are continuing, and it is reasonable for there to be an increase based on the spirit of the MA63 agreement,” he said.

He added that discussions had been held between the Treasury secretary-general and the Sarawak state secretary, and the matter would be approved as soon as possible.

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