Wednesday, 5 November 2025
For years, Sabah has watched as its people lag behind in social welfare outcomes—not because there is a lack of need, but because a lack of resources and local autonomy means our system struggles to meet the challenge. Meanwhile, much larger federal welfare budgets funnel through structures optimised for West Malaysia’s context. This imbalance is neither accidental nor sustainable if we are serious about dignity, care and the constitutional promise of partnership.
Recent data make the disparity clear. At the federal level, the Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat (JKM) was allocated over RM 2.4 billion in the 2024 budget for national welfare programmes. Meanwhile, Sabah’s state welfare budget for 2024 was roughly RM 191 million for supplies and development. That gulf matters, because Sabah’s geography, rurality and demographic spread mean each ringgit must stretch further.
The human cost of under-resourcing welfare is vividly present in old-age care. Experts in Sabah warn that elderly citizens in rural districts too often lack access to even basic geriatric and rehabilitative services: “In West Malaysia, geriatric healthcare is more accessible … but in Sabah—especially in rural areas—it’s still under-developed and often unavailable.” Asia News Network+1 Homes for the frail elderly are few, capacity is overstretched, and there are tragic cases where the sickly die before they can even be placed in a proper care home. We are no longer talking about minor systemic glitches—we’re talking about elder-care that fails the last days of our people.
This is where the 40% revenue entitlement becomes a practical welfare question, not just a constitutional or political one. Under Articles 112C and 112D of the Federal Constitution (and the Tenth Schedule), Sabah is entitled to 40 % of net federal revenue derived from the state—or at least that was the original design. BorneoVox+2Borneo Post Online+2 The state has estimated its entitlement could be as high as RM 20 billion for 2024 alone. Borneo Post Online And legal experts say the federal government owes Sabah approximately RM 4 billion in outstanding grants. Malay Mail
But this is not just about money—it’s about policy autonomy and fit-for-purpose welfare design. Consider these three pillars of what a well-funded Sabah welfare system could achieve:
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Expand residential and outreach care for the elderly: With secure revenue, Sabah would be able to build more state-run old-folks’ homes, fund mobile geriatric care teams in remote districts, subsidise family caregivers (Sabah already provides RM 450/month to home caregivers of the elderly) Daily Express Malaysia and ease the tragic scenario of elders waiting for placement or dying without care.
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Design models appropriate for Sabah geography: Instead of one‐size-fits‐all welfare models crafted for densely-populated Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah needs hub-and-spoke models, community hubs for indigenous groups, mobile services for islands and hinterlands. The cost per beneficiary will be higher, the logistics tougher, so the funding must reflect that reality.
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Invest in prevention and dignity, not just relief: Proper elder care means physiotherapy, mobility support, cognitive care, and home-based services—not just placement. The evidence shows the peninsula is ahead here; Sabah must catch up. The Star
Critics will say that Sabah already receives large federal allocations and question the 40%. But the key point is control: when funds are decided centrally, the incentives, the data, the delivery model reflect the majority’s logic—almost always peninsular logic. When Sabah controls its revenue share, it controls its model, its priorities and ensures welfare policy is grounded in local reality.
The question of 40% isn’t some parochial state grab—it’s about fulfilling a constitutional promise and enabling welfare equity. Sabah isn’t asking for charity; we are asking for our constitutional share, so we can design a welfare system for our people that leaves no elder unattended, no community underserved.
It is time for Sabah to be treated as a partner with agency, not a beneficiary waiting to be given fragments of a pie decided elsewhere. The dignity of our people demands nothing less.
