KOTA KINABALU, April 30 -- Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor pushed back against assumptions that he was not assertive in pursuing Sabah's 40 per cent revenue entitlement, insisting he has "never been afraid" in negotiations with Putrajaya.

Rejecting a move by Kepayan assemblyman Chin Tek Ming for a special motion, Hajiji said that he was not afraid to negotiate with Putrajaya for Sabah's constitutional right to 40 per cent of federal revenue derived from the state.

The chief minister dismissed claims that the state leadership was not pushing hard enough on the long-standing demand, describing such assertions as politically motivated.

"I think this is a political move, they assume we are not fully pushing for it," he said dur...