Fixing the ‘mega scandals’ in Malaysia
With 1MdB under investigation, the govt has set out to resolve the problems plaguing Felda and Tabung haji through big turnaround plans, as well as overhauling MaCC and EC.
ONE of the 10 promises Pakatan Harapan pledged to fulfil within 100 days of taking power was to probe “mega scandals” involving government bodies such as 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), Felda and Tabung Haji.
Royal Commissions of Inquiry (RCI) were to be formed to investigate the misdeeds in those agencies that have affected the country and recommend follow-up actions.
At the end of the first 100 days, it became apparent that setting up the RCIs was unlikely to happen, particularly in the case of 1MDB, which was already being probed by the authorities.
On other agencies such as Felda and Tabung Haji, the government set out to resolve their problems through massive turnaround plans.
However, before that was done, the government presented the Felda White Paper in Dewan Rakyat which detailed many shady deals and the huge losses the agency was suffering from.
Economic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali, who presented the document, said assets were bought at prices that were higher than their market value and that Felda’s debts had risen to RM14.4bil.
The listing of Felda Global Ventures (FGV) in 2012 also has not done much good for the agency, with Felda posting billions of losses from 2013 onwards.
To fix the situation, the government allocated RM6bil to Felda so it can restructure its operations and strengthen its governance.
Former Felda chairman Tan Sri Mohd Isa Abdul Samad has also been charged in court for several counts of criminal breach of trust and bribery, and more are expected to be charged following the revelations.
Tan Sri Megat Zaharuddin Mat Nor was appointed to helm Felda last July on a two-year contract and his task is to ensure that the turnaround plan succeeds.
The former Maybank chairman is optimistic and says the new business model revealed in the White Paper would help “ensure the sustainability of the new Felda”.
Meanwhile, for Tabung Haji, the government set aside an astonishing amount of RM17.8bil as a “rescue package”, with the first payment of RM500mil to be made next year.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Dr Mujahid Yusof revealed that the previous Tabung Haji leadership had ignored Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) warning that it could not afford to give high hibah or dividends as it had fewer assets than liabilities.
Tabung Haji has been placed under BNM’s purview since Jan 1 so that the central bank can supervise the restructuring of the pilgrim fund. Datuk Seri Zukri Samat was brought in as the chief executive officer last July to oversee the revamp.
Prior to the elections, Pakatan had often run on a campaign that the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and Election Commission (EC) required a “cleanup”, claiming that the agencies were ineffective and the people had lost their trust in them.
True enough, both agencies were also overhauled.
Datuk Seri Mohd Shukri Abdull, who had retired as the MACC No.2 in 2016, was back to helm the commission.
The months that followed saw a very busy period for MACC with many high-profile arrests made, including former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor and former Treasury secretary-general Tan Sri Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah.
The commission wanted to make the point that it was not afraid of going after the “big fishes”, something it had been accused of in the past.
The overhaul also saw the unexpected appointment of lawyer and member of civil society Azhar Azizan Harun as the new EC chairman, a move many regard as an attempt to bring a breath of fresh air into the commission.
A man with a mission, Azhar immediately introduced several initiatives, including the live broadcasting of the vote-counting process, which had never been done before.
New commissioners were also appointed after the old ones resigned and were facing a tribunal, which is investigating allegations of misconduct in the run-up to the 14th General Election.
In Pakatan’s manifesto, it had also pledged to put the EC and MACC under the purview of Parliament. At present, that move is still pending.
As for reducing the voting age from 21 to 18, the government is expected to table the Bill on the matter in the coming Parliament meeting in July, while the automatic voter registration proposal is still being mulled.