Cenbet: RoS must follow SOP

PETALING JAYA: Government agencies such as the Registrar of Societies (RoS) must follow standard operating procedures (SOP) to avoid allegations that it is an instrument of the government, said Centre for a Better Tomorrow (Cenbet).

On a directive by RoS for DAP to hold fresh polls for the party’s central executive committee (CEC), member of Cenbet’s board of governors Datuk Simon Lim Seng Chai said the directive has raised public suspicion of government interference.

“The public is understandably puzzled RoS took more than three years before asking the party to hold re-elections.

“The timing could not have been worse, as the prime minister’s press aide had just days earlier revisited the old issue of the party’s disputed 2012 and 2013 internal polls and questioned the legitimacy of the its central leadership.

“This was followed by the deputy prime minister’s meeting with RoS on the matter. All these only lend credence to the narrative on political meddling,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Lim said RoS should spell out the maximum processing time after receiving complaints from aggrieved members of political parties.

“Bureaucrats should also make decisions independent of input from members of the administration, even if they were just in consultations.

“When these are in place, agencies cannot be accused of dragging their feet for political motives. It also helps enhance transparency and good governance.’