KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 1 — Federal opposition parties said there is no need for them to take the lead and publicly declare their political funding despite Umno’s donation controversy, insisting that the source of their finances was already commonly known.

Rejecting comparisons to Umno’s multi-billion political donations, Klang DAP lawmaker Charles Santiago said his party has always disclosed the amount raised from fundraising dinners and events immediately after these are held.

“We are not a rich party and we obtain our funds through the right channels and that is the public from dinners and other events.

“And at the end of the function, we will tell the people how much we have raised,” he told Malay Mail Online when contacted, adding that he did not see the need to announce the amount again.

Instead, Santiago suggested for the Election Commission (EC) to step up and address the issue of political funding involving foreign funds by imposing a clear guideline on the matter.

“The EC can impose a rule on this as at the moment there is no clear guideline on foreign funds,” he said.

PAS vice-president Datuk Mohd Amar Abdullah also said the Islamist party is different from Umno as it does not receive contributions from the corporate sector or foreign funding like the latter.

Instead, he said PAS drew its resources from members and donations during political rallies.

Questioning what PAS has left to declare when it already announces the funds raised from ceramah participants on the spot, Mohd Amar also asserted that PAS has “no connection” with foreign organisations and never had foreign funding.

“If there are laws that make a declaration compulsory, if there are any contributions, we will declare. Every party has to follow the law,” he said.

Another PAS vice-president, Idris Ahmad, agreed with the need to declare fund sources for the upcoming general election, but said “Only hope that it has to be transparent and fair to all. Don’t just act on the opposition. (While) the government is let off.”

The Bukit Gantang MP said the party already makes declarations regarding its election funding to the EC, further stating that PAS discloses the details of its cash flow through its annual general meeting’s report.

Meanwhile, PKR strategy director Sim Tze Tzin suggested that the opposition-led state governments of Selangor and Penang adopt the method of financing political parties on a yearly basis and act as models for the federal government.

The Bayan Baru MP said this approach that has been implemented in countries like Germany would not only reveal details of political funds channelled to parties, but will also help eradicate corruption.

“In Germany, the government pays 5 euros for each vote garnered by a political party and that money is paid to allow parties to operate annually.

“Selangor and Penang can follow similarly and the people will be able to keep track of the monies going to these party during state assembly sittings and this won’t allow any room for foreign influences,” he said.

It is unclear if public fundraising is the primary source of income for the parties that claim so, as none in Malaysia publicly declares how it is financed in its entirety, due to the absence of laws governing political financing.

Last Friday, Umno supreme council member Datuk Abdul Aziz Kaprawi disclosed that a part of the US$681 million (RM2.08 billion) cash gift from Saudi Arabia’s royal house to the prime minister in 2013 was used for an election.

Abdul Aziz was asked about the discrepancy of some US$61 million, following the Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali’s recent disclosure that an unutilised sum amounting to US$620 million (RM2.03 billion) was later returned in August 2013.

Apandi had earlier on Tuesday declared that there was no criminal wrongdoing in the cash transfers into Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s private bank accounts and said he would instruct the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to close the case, but the latter said it will refer the decision to its Operations Review Panel for a review as part of its standard procedure.