KUALA LUMPUR, June 29 — A motion to compel all Members of Parliament (MPs) to declare their income and assets to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) is expected to take centre stage when the Dewan Raykat begins its session on Monday.
Based on the Dewan Rakyat order papers, the motion, expected to be tabled by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Liew Vui Keong, will require members of the House, their spouses and children, and trustees to declare their assets in the form of a Statutory Declaration, in line with the principle of accountability and transparency.
The motion states that the Statutory Declaration needs to be submitted to the Dewan Rakyat Speaker within three months of the motion being adopted by the House. The asset declaration will then be displayed on the MACC portal.
Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had been reported as saying that all MPs, including from the opposition, would be required to declare their assets because they all wield influence which could be used to get “payments”.
For now the declaration of assets by government MPs and members of the administration is done voluntarily and the details are displayed publicly on the MACC Asset Declaration Portal.
According to the portal, so far 124 government MPs have declared their assets.
Another issue expected to grab attention in the coming sitting is proposed amendments to the Federal Constitution to lower the eligible age for voting from 21 to 18.
Election Commission chairman Azhar Azizan Harun had been reported as saying that a motion on this was expected to be tabled on July 4.
If approved, it will enable more youths and students of institutions of higher learning to vote in the next general election.
Since it is a constitutional amendment, it would require a two-thirds majority or the support of at least 148 of the 222 MPs to pass.
On April 9 this year, the government failed in its bid to amend the Federal Constitution to restore the original status of Sabah and Sarawak as enshrined in the Malaysia Agreement 1963, when the support received was 10 votes short of the required two-thirds majority.
Pakatan Harapan component parties together with their Sabah partners Warisan and UPKO now have a combined 139 seats in the Dewan Rakyat.
Several bills are also expected to be tabled for first reading in this session, including Peaceful Assembly (Amendment) Bill 2019, Youth Development and Youth Associations (Amendment) Bill 2019 and Consumer Protection (Amendment) Bill 2019.
The Dewan Rakyat will sit for 12 days, from Monday until July 18, in the second meeting of the second session of the 14th Parliament. — Bernama
