KUCHING, Sept. 24 -- Every adult Sarawakian will be guaranteed a basic monthly income of RM500 if the Sarawak People's Aspiration Party (Aspirasi) and its partners in Gagasan Anak Sarawak (Gasak) can form the state government in the next election that must be called by next year.

Aspirasi president Lina Soo made the promise today while launching her party's election manifesto, indicating that the money will come from the billions of ringgit in Sarawak's oil-and-gas (O&G) revenue that currently go into federal coffers.

"What we propose is that Sarawak should impose 30 per cent state sales tax instead of the negligible 5 per cent," she said at the launch Aspirasi's eight-point election manifesto here.

She said the surplus funds from Sara...