Political Funding Bill expected to be tabled in Parliament in November

KUALA LUMPUR: The government expects the Political Funding Bill to be tabled for the first and second readings in the Parliament in early and late November, respectively, said Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Parliament and Law) Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar.

He said the National Centre for Governance, Integrity and Anti-Corruption (GIACC) has prepared the scope and policy parameters outlined in the bill and submitted it to the Attorney General's Chambers (AGC) for scrutiny before being finalised.

Wan Junaidi said he will also hold an engagement session with all members of Parliament, both from the government and the opposition, on Sept 28 in Parliament, to obtain feedback on the bill that is being drafted.

"In addition, this bill also takes into account the views of stakeholders through engagement sessions held with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) such as the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS), the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih) and academics.

"At the same time, several internal discussion sessions were also held with relevant government departments and agencies to detail the drafting of this bill," he said in a statement today.

Wan Junaidi also recalled that the initiative to introduce a law that regulates political donations was mooted by the government in 2015 through the establishment of the National Consultative Committee on Political Funding (JKNMPP) but was not implemented.

He added that the proposed legislative framework for the Political Funding Bill had also been submitted by the government to Parliament in November 2019 to be presented to the Special Select Committee to consider the bill, but it was also not achieved.

"The government is confident and remains committed that this political funding law will be implemented this time," he said.

-- BERNAMA