NTP: NCC to improve political financing framework as part of anti-corruption reform

The National Consultative Committee of Political Funding is improving the political financing framework as part of the nation's effort on anti-corruption reform, according to the National Transformation Programme (NTP) Annual Report 2015.

The report said the committee was expected to make some headway into building the momentum in addressing political financing.

Entitled, 'Breaking the Vicious Cycle of Corruption', the report stated that the secretariat had been meeting local stakeholders, political parties, civil society groups like Malaysian Youth Council and Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia, and members of the Youth Parliament to obtain their views, support and initiatives.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak launched the NTP Annual Report 2015 that addresses Malaysia's transformation journey, including in some key socio-economic areas under the NTP over the last six years.

According to the report, there was a need for political funding to institutionalise a more transparent political financing system to tackle the problem of grand corruption head-on.

NTP Annual Report said the governance framework would have included three mandatory elements, namely donations to be made in the party's name; all donations to be immediately receipted; and, records of all sources of funding to be audited externally.

"Over the last three years, despite exploring several possible options, including a proposal to amend the Societies Act, the initiative has so far, failed to gain traction due to entrenched political resistance," it said.

In August 2015, against the backdrop of sensational issues on political financing, the prime minister announced the formation of the National Consultative Committee on Political Funding to propose a regulation structure

for political financing within a year.

The report also said the initiative was significant as to improve Malaysia's ranking in the Corruption Perception Index (CPI) which would influence foreign investor perception towards the country.

In 2015, Malaysia scored 50 out of 100 in CPI, highlighting the need for all parties to 'walk the talk' and expedite the adoption of anti-corruption reform.

Apart from political funding, the government had made achievements in the establishment of the Governance and Integrity Division (BITU) through a national framework formed under the Integrity and Governance Committee (JITU), which comprised secretaries-general, integrity units, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission top officials and the Auditor-General's Office, said the report.

It said the primary purpose was for JITU to create a culture of transparency within the civil service and the integrity units were established to monitor compliance to integrity standards by high-value projects and border control agencies.