Political funding bill needs to be discussed thoroughly - Hamzah

KAJANG: The political funding bill must be discussed in detail to ensure the law is effective, efficient and relevant, said Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin.

Hamzah who is also Cabinet Special Committee on Anti-Corruption (JKKMAR) member, said the move was important to avoid any flip-flops in the implementation of the law.

"We must make sure that the law can always be used. (Although) It is a good policy, the details must be studied in detail by a group comprising experts and those who have practiced (the law) abroadm," he said.

He said this to reporters after officiating the Mobile Recovery Treatment service for National Anti-Drugs Agency (MRT AADK), here today.

Yesterday, the media reported that JKKMAR has agreed in principle to the proposed enactment of the Political Funding Bill.

However, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the proposed bill would be tabled to the Cabinet for discussion first before engagement sessions were held with political parties.

On the use of cannabis for medical purposes in Malaysia, Hamzah said priority should be given to existing problems such as drug addiction which have yet to be resolved.

"If we want to add more enemies (cannabis), we must first reduce drug addiction in the country. Everything that we do will have its good (side)," he said.

Yesterday, Deputy Health Minister Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali said that clinical studies on cannabis for medical use in Malaysia were still at the preliminary stage and were not as advanced as in foreign countries that have used cannabis for the treatment of chronic diseases.

-- BERNAMA