The local government in Sabah is the lowest level government in Sabah, Malaysia. It ranks third in the Malaysian government system after federal and state government. Local governments have the power to levy property taxes, to enact local laws and regulations, and to issue licenses and permits for any type of trade in their area. However, it also has the obligation to provide basic utilities, such as to regulate rubbish collection and waste disposal and to ensure urban or regional planning.
The district and municipal constitution in Sabah is based on the Local Government Ordinance 1961. This ordinance also regulates the responsibilities and functions of community organs. A state ministry, the Ministry of Local Government and Housing, which was first established after the 1963 state elections, regulates the activities of the district/municipal authorities in the state of Sabah.
Sabah is divided into administrative districts. The administrative districts are made up of towns and defined areas. These administrative districts, commonly referred to as the L.A.A (local authority area), will be governed by (depending on the status of the administrative district governed):
The basis of this structure is the Local Government Ordinance 1961. This decree empowers the Yang di-Pertua Negeri, among other things, to equip the districts with certain powers and to determine the names and boundaries of the districts. The structure of the administrative districts was first established in 1961 by this ordinance and then amended as necessary by decree (Administrative Divisions Proclamation).
District | Name of the local government executive | Date of establishment | Number of council members | Decree |
---|---|---|---|---|
Beaufort | Beaufort District Council | 1 January 1962 | 20 | Beaufort District Council Instrument [1] |
Beluran | Beluran District Council | 1 July 1968 | 11 | Labuk/Sugut District Council Instrument 1968 [2] [note 1] |
Keningau | Keningau District Council | 1 January 1962 | 20 | Keningau District Council Instrument [3] |
Kota Belud | Kota Belud District Council | 1 January 1962 | 18 | Kota Belud District Council Instrument [4] |
Kinabatangan | Kinabatangan District Council | 1 July 1968 | 11 | Kinabatangan District Council Instrument [5] |
Kota Kinabalu | Kota Kinabalu City Hall | 2 February 2000 | 20 | Kota Kinabalu City Hall Instrument 2000 [6] |
Kota Marudu | Kota Marudu District Council | 1 January 1983 | 18 | Kota Marudu District Council Instrument [7] |
Kuala Penyu | Kuala Penyu District Council | 1 January 1962 | 18 | Kuala Penyu District Council Instrument [8] |
Kudat | Kudat Town Board | 1 January 1983 | 20 | Kudat Town Board Instrument 1982 [9] |
Kunak | Kunak District Council | 1 June 1994 | 18 | Kunak District Council Instrument 1994 [10] |
Lahad Datu | Lahad Datu District Council | 1 January 1962 | 18 | Lahad Datu District Council Instrument [11] |
Papar | Papar District Council | 1 January 1962 | 20 | Papar District Council Instrument [12] |
Penampang | Penampang District Council | 1 January 1962 | 20 | Penampang District Council Instrument [13] |
Nabawan | Nabawan District Council | 1 January 1964 | 11 | Pensiangan District Council Instrument 1964 [14] [note 2] |
Pitas | Pitas District Council | 8 June 2010 | 18 | Pitas District Council Instrument 2009 [15] |
Putatan | Putatan District Council | 8 June 2010 | 18 | Putatan District Council Instrument 2010 [16] |
Ranau | Ranau District Council | 1 January 1962 | 18 | Ranau District Council Instrument [17] |
Sandakan | Sandakan Municipal Council | 1 January 1982 | 20 | Sandakan Municipal Council Instrument [18] |
Semporna | Semporna District Council | 1 January 1962 | 18 | Semporna District Council Instrument [19] |
Sipitang | Sipitang District Council | 1 January 1962 | 18 | Sipitang District Council Instrument [20] |
Tambunan | Tambunan District Council | 1 January 1962 | 18 | Tambunan District Council Instrument [21] |
Tawau | Tawau Municipal Council | 1 January 1982 | 24 | Tawau Municipal Council Instrument [22] |
Telupid | ||||
Tenom | Tenom District Council | 1 January 1962 | 18 | Tenom District Council Instrument [23] |
Tongod | Tongod District Council | |||
Tuaran | Tuaran District Council | 1 January 1962 | 20 | Tuaran District Council Instrument 1961 [24] |
Sabah is initially divided into five administrative areas - Interior Division, Kudat Division, Sandakan Division, Tawau Division and West Coast Division. These administrative areas are assigned to districts. The administration of a district is the responsibility of a district officer. Associated with the district office is an assistant district officer. The administrative headquarters of the district is the District Office (Pejabat Daerah). Usually, the districts are named after the largest city/towns within the area or after the seat of the administration; For example, the town of Sandakan is the largest in the district of Sandakan under the Sandakan Division. Districts can be further subdivided into sub-districts (daerah kecil, literally "small district"). These do not represent a separate administrative level, but are to be understood as an "extended arm" of the district office, which perform certain administrative tasks in the district/municipalities. The status of a sub-district is an important step in the direction to achieve full district status. Until 2011, there were 11 sub-districts in Sabah: [25]
Banggi | Kemabong | Matunggong | Membakut |
Menumbok | Pagalungan | Paitan | Sook |
Tamparuli | Telupid | Tungku |
Sabah has three different types of administrative districts. The lowest level of a local authority is the district administered by a district council. There are certain criteria for upgrading:
Dewan Bandaraya (City Hall) | Majlis Perbandaran (Municipal Council) | Majlis Daerah (District Council) | |
---|---|---|---|
Population | from 500,000 inhabitants | from 150,000 inhabitants | less than 150,000 inhabitants |
Tax revenues | Sustainably secured income of at least RM100 million [note 3] [note 4] | Sustainably secured income of at least RM20 million [note 5] | Less than RM20 million |
Areas | Kota Kinabalu | Sandakan, Tawau | Beaufort, Keningau, Kinabatangan/Tongod, Kota Belud, Kota Marudu/Pitas, Kuala Penyu, Kunak, Lahad Datu, Nabawan, Papar, Penampang/Putatan, Ranau, Semporna, Sipitang, Tambunan, Tenom, Tuaran, Kudat |
The "Local Government Department of States of Malaysia" criteria for the status of a local authority comprise a number of requirements. [26] For example, Kota Kinabalu had to prove for his status as a city hall, among other things:
Unlike other states in Malaysia, the administrative level of mukim does not exist in Sabah. In the context of the district/municipal administration in Sabah, mukim are a summary of various settlements and villages, which, however, are subordinate to the district offices.
In contrast to the situation in Germany, where the municipal councils always represent the representation of the municipal citizens even in their different forms (municipal representation), the members of the "City Hall", the "Municipal Council" and the "District Council" are not democratically elected by the people as they are appointed by the Minister of Local Government and Housing. The effectiveness of local laws and regulations is also only established by their ratification by the Minister of State.
Within the administrative of Sabah, the following abbreviations are often found: [27]
Abbreviation | Malay translation | Official English term |
---|---|---|
L.A.A. | Local Authority Area | |
D.B. | Dewan Bandaraya | City Hall |
M.P. | Majlis Perbandaran | Municipal Council |
M.D. | Majlis Daerah | District Council |
L.B. | Lembaga Bandaran | Town Board |
Kudat is the capital of the Kudat District in the Kudat Division of Sabah, Malaysia. Its population was estimated to be around 29,025 in 2010. It is located on the Kudat Peninsula, about 190 kilometres (120 mi) north of Kota Kinabalu, the state capital, and is near the northernmost point of Borneo. It is the largest town in the heartland of the Rungus people which is a sub-ethnic group of the majority Kadazan-Dusun race and is therefore a major centre of Rungus culture. It is also notable for being one of the first parts of Sabah to be settled by Chinese Malaysians, particularly from the Hakka dialect group. It is the Northernmost Malaysian city.
Sandakan formerly known at various times as Elopura, is the capital of the Sandakan District in Sabah, Malaysia. It is the second largest city in Sabah after Kota Kinabalu. It is located on the Sandakan Peninsula and east coast of the state in the administrative centre of Sandakan Division and was the former capital of British North Borneo. In 2010, the city had an estimated population of 157,330 while the overall municipal area had a total population of 396,290. The population of the municipal area had increased to 439,050 by the 2020 Census.
Tawau, formerly known as Tawao, is the capital of the Tawau District in Sabah, Malaysia. It is the third-largest city in Sabah, after Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan. It is located on the Semporna Peninsula in the southeast coast of the state in the administrative centre of Tawau Division, which is bordered by the Sulu Sea to the east, the Celebes Sea to the south at Cowie Bay and shares a border with North Kalimantan, Indonesia. The town had an estimated population as of 2010, of 113,809, while the whole municipality area had a population of 397,673. The municipal area had a population of 372,615 at the 2020 Census.
The North Borneo Chartered Company (NBCC), also known as the British North Borneo Company (BNBC) was a British chartered company formed on 1 November 1881 to administer and exploit the resources of North Borneo. The territory became a protectorate of the British Empire in 1888 but the company remained involved with the territory until 1946, when administration was fully assumed by the Crown colony government.
Kudat Division is an administrative division in the state of Sabah, Malaysia. It occupies the northern tip of Sabah. Its total area of 4,623 square kilometres makes it the smallest of the five divisions of Sabah. The division covers the districts of Kudat, Pitas and Kota Marudu, as well as the islands of Balak, Balambangan, Banggi, Bankawan, Guhuan Utara, Kalampunian and Malawali.
Tawau Division is one of the five administrative sub-divisions of Sabah, Malaysia. It occupies a total of 14,905 square kilometres or 20% of Sabah's territory. The main towns include the capital of Tawau, Lahad Datu, Kunak and Semporna. Tawau division has 26% of Sabah's total population, with the main indigenous groups consisting of the Bajau, Suluk, Ida'an, Tidong, Cocos, Murut, Lun Bawang/Lun Dayeh as well as a minority of mixed ethnic groups. Large numbers of both legal and illegal immigrants from Indonesia such as the Buginese and Torajans, from East Timor the Timorese, from the Philippines the Tausūg and Visayans as well South and West Asian immigrants such as Pakistanis, Indians and Arabs can be found in this area. As with the rest of Sabah, the division also has large numbers of ethnic Chinese.
Sandakan Division is an administrative division of Sabah, Malaysia. It stretches diagonally from the northeastern coast of Sabah to the state's central region. With an area of 28,205 square kilometres, it occupies 38.3% of Sabah's territory, and is thus the largest of the five administrative divisions of Sabah. It also has approximately 19.4% of Sabah's total population, with the major inhabitants comprising the Chinese, Orang Sungai, Kadazan-Dusun, Suluk and Bajau Simunul.
West Coast Division is an administrative division of Sabah, Malaysia. It occupies the northwest portion of Sabah. With an area of 7,588 square kilometres, it occupies 10.3% of Sabah's territory. It also has approximately 30% of Sabah's total population, with the main indigenous inhabitants comprising the Bajau, Bisaya, Bruneian Malay, Dusun, Illanun, Kadazan and Kedayan, as well with a significant numbers of Chinese. The division is divided into the districts of Ranau, Kota Belud, Tuaran, Penampang, Papar, and the state capital Kota Kinabalu. The main towns are as in the names of the districts, plus other towns including Putatan, Inanam, Telipok, Tamparuli, Tenghilan and Kinarut.
The Interior Division is an administrative division of the state of Sabah, Malaysia. It occupies the southwest portion of Sabah, bordered by the neighbouring state of Sarawak on its west. With an area of 18,298 square kilometres, it covers 24.9% of Sabah's territory and is home to approximately 14.7% of Sabah's total population. The largest town in the Interior Division is Keningau. Other main towns in this division include Beaufort, Kuala Penyu, Sipitang, Tambunan and Tenom.
Sabah State Railway (SSR) is a railway system and operator in the state of Sabah in Malaysia. It is the only rail transport system operating on the island of Borneo. The railway consists of a single 134-kilometre line from Tanjung Aru, Kota Kinabalu in West Coast Division to the town of Tenom, in the Interior Division. It was formerly known as North Borneo Railway.
Divisions are the primary subdivisions of Sabah and Sarawak, the states in East Malaysia. Each division is subdivided into districts — this is different in Peninsular Malaysia whereby districts are generally the primary subdivisions of a state. Each division is headed by a resident.
Sabah Wildlife Department, a local wildlife authority under Sabah's state Ministry for Tourism Development, Environment, Science and Technology, enforces the "Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997" for the proper regulation, use, protection, conservation and management of wildlife, caves and wildlife areas in Sabah. Headquartered in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, jurisdiction is spread amongst district offices:
The Crown Colony of North Borneo was a British Crown colony on the island of Borneo established in 1946 shortly after the dissolution of the British Military Administration. The Crown Colony of Labuan joined the new Crown Colony during its formation. It was succeeded as the state of Sabah through the formation of the Federation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963.
The North Eastern Sabah Railway Line is a proposed railway line from the city of Kota Kinabalu that would connect Kudat, Sandakan and Tawau as part of the Sabah State Railway line extension plan. The plan was supported by the Malaysian federal government represented by Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai on 17 September 2015. On 21 March 2017, the study to establish the line to Kudat started, with around RM1 million being allocated.
The Nabawan District is an administrative district in the Malaysian state of Sabah, part of the Interior Division which includes the districts of Beaufort, Keningau, Kuala Penyu, Nabawan, Sipitang, Tambunan and Tenom. The capital of the district is in Nabawan Town.
The Sandakan District is an administrative district in the Malaysian state of Sabah, part of the Sandakan Division which includes the districts of Beluran, Kinabatangan, Sandakan, Telupid and Tongod. The capital of the district is in Sandakan City.
The Tawau District is an administrative district in the Malaysian state of Sabah, part of the Tawau Division which also includes the districts of Kunak, Lahad Datu, Semporna and Tawau. The capital of the district is in Tawau Town.