The All-Party Parliamentary Group Malaysia (APPGM) on Integrity, Governance and Anti-Corruption urges the government to expedite its commitment to institutional reforms.
APPGM chairman Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh (PH-Ledang) told reporters on Thursday (March 21) that following engagement held between APPGM-IGA with other stakeholders, the group has agreed to prioritise four reform proposals out of eight, adding that the decision to urge for the reforms be done in phases was made after considering several aspects which include the urgency and priority.
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APPGM chairman Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh (PH-Ledang) told reporters on Thursday (March 21) that following engagement held between APPGM-IGA with other stakeholders, the group has agreed to prioritise four reform proposals out of eight, adding that the decision to urge for the reforms be done in phases was made after considering several aspects which include the urgency and priority.
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NewsTranscript
00:00 To ensure the justice and interest of the people, as mandated by the Legislative Body and the State Legislation,
00:10 we have presented 8 initial proposals.
00:15 The first is related to the separation of powers between the judges and the prosecutors.
00:21 The second is to move to the 2010 Information Providers Protection Act.
00:26 The third is to move to the 2009 SPRM Act.
00:30 The fourth is to reform the Parliament through the Parliamentary Service Act.
00:34 The fifth is to move to the 2009 Judicial Success Order Act.
00:39 The sixth is to revoke the Provisional Act.
00:42 The seventh is to revoke the Political Funding Act.
00:45 And the eighth is to implement the National Anti-Corruption Plan.
00:50 At that time, we have presented 8 initial proposals.
00:54 But after a series of negotiations, after a lot of negotiations,
00:59 and we have also studied the principles, the implementation of the policy,
01:05 and the importance of the reform of the institution in a systematic and comprehensive way,
01:12 especially to ensure the control of the jurisdiction,
01:17 the conflict of interest, the enforcement of integrity of the governance and agenda of anti-corruption,
01:23 we have agreed that the above proposals must be implemented in several phases.
01:30 And the focus in this first phase must be placed on
01:34 the first is the separation of powers between the judges and the prosecutors.
01:38 The second is to move to the 2009 Information Providers Protection Act.
01:43 The third is to reform the Parliament through the Parliamentary Service Act.
01:47 And the fourth is to revoke the Freedom of Information Act.
01:51 So, if you look at this scenario, it is quite short.
01:57 But that does not reduce our focus on other things.
02:05 Because all of these that we have presented and discussed
02:10 are closely related to the issues of integrity, governance, anti-corruption.
02:19 So, one of them is closely related to the other.
02:24 But we understand that after we have discussed the governance,
02:27 we have met with various parties and the special powers,
02:31 we understand that these are the four things that we understand and realize
02:38 that can be implemented, especially in this framework.
02:43 So, to start with the things that have been proposed,
02:50 I would like to start with the issue of the separation of powers
02:55 between the judges and the prosecutors.
02:58 I have also posed a question to the Minister on the 19th of March,
03:05 the question was 42, so it did not go up.
03:09 But the answer was written after it was given.
03:11 So, this is related to the question and answer that was given to me by the Minister.
03:17 He has stated his commitment to the government
03:20 to implement the separation of powers between the judges and the prosecutors.
03:24 However, it is a long process.
03:27 The agenda of this separation of powers is done in three phases.
03:31 That is, to create a special research cooperative team
03:35 to design a model in the context of Malaysia.
03:38 The second phase is to create a special technical team
03:42 that will study comprehensively the implications of the law,
03:46 responsibility and finance before preparing a report for the Ministerial Review.
03:51 And the third phase is to hold a session related to the state government,
03:56 Sabah and Sarawak, as well as other important parties,
04:00 including the Agency for Strengthening Power.
04:03 Based on this answer, this is the answer we received at the end of last year.
04:10 But I believe there are additional studies that have been done
04:18 on the results of the feedback provided by various parties,
04:23 especially from the Special Selective Powers Committee,
04:25 from us and perhaps from other top parties.
04:29 We have also been invited to provide feedback and feedback
04:34 to the Special Selective Powers Committee on Human Rights,
04:37 Elections and Reform of Institutions.
04:39 And the discussion at that level, among other things,
04:43 detailed the implications of the law and the move to Article 145 of the Covenant,
04:51 challenges and models that are appropriate to be practiced in Malaysia.
04:55 And we will continue to discuss this with the other parties,
05:00 apart from the authorities that will carry out this discussion,
05:05 regarding the separation of powers,
05:08 namely the Malaysian Judiciary, Sabah Law Society,
05:12 The Advocates Association of Sarawak,
05:14 the Law and Crime Procedure, the State Judiciary,
05:17 the Ministerial Judiciary and the JPM Law and Procedure Department.
05:21 Issues related to costs are also being investigated by the government.
05:25 And the timeline that has been set for us,
05:27 hoping that this separation of powers can be implemented in this framework as well.
05:33 Meaning that we hope that in the next two or three years,
05:36 it can be implemented.
05:38 Indeed, I understand that there are among the communities out there
05:41 who feel that this needs to be immediately done
05:45 and there are no other possible reasons that can be delayed.
05:50 But it involves a shift in the budget.
05:53 So it is not a trivial or small matter.
05:57 We at the RTI believe that,
06:00 even though the government has to face various challenges
06:03 in the implementation of this separation of powers,
06:06 but the movement must continue and be accelerated.
06:10 And to ensure that this legislative system is not shadowed by negative perceptions,
06:15 that there is a choice,
06:17 that there is a conflict of interest between the State Judiciary and the JPM.
06:22 And I believe that this, as mentioned before,
06:26 can give confidence to the people, to the outside world,
06:32 and reduce the lack of trust.
06:36 So this is one of the ways
06:39 to ensure that this can be handled in the best possible way.
06:43 This is related to the move to the Act of Protection of Information Providers 2009.
06:53 Not information buyers, but information providers.
06:57 So in the previous series,
07:00 I have also raised the issue of the move to the Act,
07:05 which is in the special session in November last year, 2023.
07:11 And I raised it once again and emphasized it in the discussion of the RTI in Raja,
07:18 regarding the move to the Act of Protection of Information Providers,
07:23 which we have also listed in the RTI Group, discussed and elucidated.
07:32 So on 16 March 2024,
07:36 the answer was received from the Minister of Law and Reform,
07:45 Datuk Seri Azlina Osman Said,
07:48 who stated that the government is reviewing the proposed mechanism
07:52 for the neutralization of the complaint of illegal conduct
07:56 and the provision of information providers.
08:00 The improvement to this Act will enable the implementation
08:04 of the Act of Protection of Information Providers in an exclusive and effective way
08:09 in handling related complaints.
08:13 So there are a few things that need to be elucidated,
08:16 such as to be read once with an improvement to the Ombudsman Act.
08:22 Because it is an internal reporting that needs to be improved
08:28 so that the Act of Protection of Information Providers,
08:34 when it is amended,
08:37 it will no longer be a group here and there,
08:41 so it must be combined.
08:44 Our response from the RTI Group on the integration of governance and anti-corruption is
08:51 that we emphasize that the amendment to this move cannot be postponed
08:57 since it will be regressive and will not move in line with the government's efforts
09:04 to create a free country of corruption.
09:07 Information providers must be protected perfectly
09:11 and not intimidated when reporting anything illegal
09:17 that violates the Act of Protection of Information Providers.
09:19 In the context of corruption,
09:21 this move will also reduce the potential for a rise in corruption
09:28 before it is not controlled and can result in a loss that is not covered by the state.
09:35 The third thing I want to share is about the reformation of the Parliament
09:40 through the Act of Service of the Parliament.
09:43 As everyone is aware, on March 13, 2024,
09:48 the Minister of the Ministry of Finance, Dato' Syah Azalina,
09:51 said that the government, in principle, agrees to the reformation
09:58 in line with the statute of limitations
10:00 to establish the doctrine of separation of power between the body of law and the executive.
10:05 And it involves once again the move of the institution.
10:08 For us, there is the Act of Service of the Parliament,
10:12 which now, according to the Minister, is 90% ready
10:17 and waiting for the time to be established in the people's court.
10:20 So this is one of the important things that must be given priority by the government,
10:24 even if only 10% remains before this effort is completed in the Parliament.
10:29 I believe this is fully supported by all members of the Parliament,
10:34 including the opposition.
10:36 So we are wholeheartedly to ensure that the Act of Service of the Parliament
10:41 can be established and can be passed in the near future.
10:45 We suggest that the freedom and autonomy of this Parliament
10:50 and its establishment as a wealth and equal institution
10:54 to the government's administration is not enough
10:58 to return the old version of the Act of Service of the Parliament in 1963.
11:03 The new Act of Service of the Parliament must ensure
11:06 that the power of control over matters related to administration, finance
11:11 and the parliament's authority is given to the parliament.
11:15 We need, first, the establishment of a free Act of Service of the Parliament.
11:22 Second, the move to the United Nations to restore the provision
11:28 of the Act of Service of the Parliament under Article 65
11:31 and to give power to the Act of Service of the Parliament
11:34 to appoint the Minister of the People's Court and the Minister of State.
11:38 Third, we also suggest the appointment of the role of the Head of Parliamentary Administration
11:44 of the People's Court and the State Court in the Indok Act.
11:49 Fourth, the establishment of a permanent parliamentary office
11:53 to manage the parliament's administration and finances
11:56 to help the people.
11:58 And the last is to have a employment scheme and employment for parliamentarians
12:04 in line with the public service scheme.
12:07 This is important because we believe that there must be a scheme.
12:11 It's not just a career path.
12:14 This is one of the things that are challenging,
12:17 that might be an obstacle in the previous discussions
12:21 about the Act of Service of the Parliament.
12:24 So, with this autonomy, we can ensure the freedom of the body
12:29 and avoid conflicts of interest in terms of transparency
12:34 and the decisions made by the parliament.
12:36 I will touch on the Freedom of Information Act.
12:42 Last year, I made a PC to touch on this Act.
12:47 The concept of the Freedom of Information Act
12:52 is related to transparency and accountability.
12:57 When we fight for freedom of speech,
13:02 we need to give everyone the right to speak.
13:07 But at the same time, we need to give them the space
13:12 to get the information they need to know,
13:18 the right to know, so that they can get detailed information
13:22 and then they can speak more perfectly.
13:26 In this case, the FPPG did not focus on the Freedom of Information Act.
13:36 But when we look at the current developments,
13:40 where the Minister of Law and Reformation
13:45 have said that their target this year
13:49 is to push for the Freedom of Information Act.
13:54 So, in line with the government's decision,
13:59 the FPPG has included the Freedom of Information Act
14:06 in our focus, so that we can achieve our target.
14:12 I would like to stress that the FPPG believes
14:18 that by expanding the communication channels to the people,
14:22 it is a fundamental principle in democracy.
14:28 So, the public sector cannot only keep information
14:32 for their own interests, but it is also a practice
14:37 to be implemented for the public interest.
14:42 So, it is certain that if there is inequality
14:46 in the flow of information, it will contribute
14:49 to inequality in the relationship between the people and the government.
14:55 And it will also affect the people's efforts
14:59 to openly and effectively monitor government institutions.
15:04 Thank you.
15:05 [END]