IPOH, Nov 15 — Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) supreme council member Wan Saiful Wan Jan has called on the government to come up with a guideline for political donations.

Saying the process should be sped up, Wan Saiful said the current process of declaration was unclear.

"I approached the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) recently to inquire about this but they said there was none.”

"For me, the government needs to come up with a guideline for transparency,” he said, noting that whenever PPBM meets, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin remind council members not to repeat the past mistakes of the former government.

To a question, Wan Saiful, who was speaking to reporters after attending the Perak Integrity Strengthening Seminar at Kinta Riverfront Hotel here where he was a panellist, said the non-declaration of political donations was not a crime.

"For example, when someone gives me RM1,000 to be given to calamity victims, do I declare the money as income? If I do, it will be taxed; hence, the amount given to victims will be less,” he said, adding that he was not sure where one should declare such income.

Wan Saiful, who is also National Higher Education Corporation chairman, said such matters need to be look into carefully to ensure contributions for the rakyat reaches them.

"At the same time, politicians will not be trapped into receiving donations as it is an offence if not declared,” he said.

Wan Saiful noted that in the electoral reform committee, political donations were on the agenda.

"As such, it needs to be sped up,” he said.