PETALING JAYA: The government has not reached an agreement on the key details of a proposed political financing bill, having hit a deadlock on a few matters with key stakeholders, says law and institutional reform minister Azalina Othman Said.
In a written parliamentary reply, Azalina said more talks will be held, including with political party leaders, before the bill is tabled in the Dewan Rakyat.
“Several fundamental issues have not reached unanimous agreement, such as the need for public funding for political parties, limits on donations, and the regulating body for political financing,” she said.
She was responding to separate questions raised by Ismail Sabri Yaakob (BN-Bera) and Jalaluddin Alias (BN-Jelebu), who had asked for a status update on the bill.
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission had recently called for the bill to be expedited, with an initial focus on regulating funding for election campaigns.
Azalina said the government has worked on the bill since 2023 and held eight engagement sessions so far.
They included discussions with political parties, government agencies, and the parliamentary special select committee on human rights, elections, and institutional reform.
She said she had chaired a meeting with representatives from MACC, the finance ministry, the Election Commission, the Registrar of Societies, and the Attorney-General’s Chambers to discuss the feasibility of the law.
However, disagreements remained despite these discussions.
“To address this, the government will hold further talks with the secretaries-general of all political parties, as well as universities and other stakeholders to gather more perspectives.
“The government will also listen to views from the ruling and opposition parties to ensure an inclusive decision-making process,” she said.
Azalina said the government is committed to ensuring any new law on political financing is transparent, data-driven and aligns with public interest.
