Attorney General (AG) Datuk Nor Asiah Mohd Yusof has maintained that the Nature Conservation Agreement (NCA), despite being signed in October, was not finalised nor binding because it was still missing a lot of details, including an agreed upon forest area. — Picture by Yusof Mat Isa
KOTA KINABALU, Feb 9 — Amidst confusion over whether a controversial carbon trading deal in Sabah is going ahead, the state Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) has clarified that the signed agreement was not enforceable as due diligence was still being conducted on the third-party company involved.
Attorney General (AG) Datuk Nor Asiah Mohd Yusof has maintained that the Nature Conservation Agreement (NCA), despite being signed in October, was not finalised nor binding because it was still missing a lot of details, including an agreed upon forest area.
“Among others, the Designated Area — which is the subject matter of the NCA — has not been ascertained nor identified. Until the Designated Area is ascertained and incorporated, each and every term, condition and penalty in the proposed NCA is rendered non-binding and unenforceable.
“In short, the NCA in its present form is legally impotent,” she said in a statement here today.
Other unresolved issues are the pilot area and map, development of a Nature Conservation Management Plan (NCMP), consent from affected native communities (where necessary), carbon pricing and price discovery mechanisms agreeable to the state, independent oversight of the implementation of the NCA and an objective performance assessment in meeting the intended goals.
She also said that the state intended to include safeguards to mitigate/avoid negative impact to current key economic sectors, and to ensure that revenue gained from carbon trading is leveraged for the long-term benefit for the people of Sabah; and a satisfactory due diligence report on and confirmation of the truth and reliability of Hoch Standard’s representations and capability.
She said that this was still true despite several claims made by Hoch Standard — that it has access to financial networks and is capable of funding and realising the objectives of the NCA.
“The proposed NCA and its promoters are now being scrutinised by the state Attorney General’s Chambers as part of a wide-ranging and ongoing due diligence exercise. Unless and until Hoch Standard Pte Ltd, its promoters and affiliates, meet the requirements of the state government, the proposed NCA will not proceed,” she said.
Nor Asiah further said that the state will not permit its land to be leased, transferred or “handed over” as part of any carbon trading or monetising deal.
“Sabah has a right to carbon sovereignty and will harness and build its own expertise under the Sabah Climate Change Committee to manage a carbon future in alignment with recognised global standards, safeguards and processes that prioritises equity, inclusion, transparency and multilateralism,” she said.
This is the first time the state AG has spoken about the matter since it came to light last December.
The main proponent of the project is Sabah Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan, who has insisted that the project and its parties have the credibility and capability.
A report by international news outlet Al Jazeera recently reignited interest in the issue, prompting a press conference by Kitingan that was joined by Hoch Standard’s managing director Dr Ho Choon Hou via Zoom.
The main criticisms of the deal revolve around the amount of land involved, the lack of transparency in appointing the third party, and the credentials of the third party itself, which has no apparent background in carbon trading.