KUALA LUMPUR, March 6 — The new format for MPs and administrative members to declare their assets has been finalised and will soon be tabled in the Cabinet for further consideration.
Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) M. Kulasegaran said the proposal for the new format was tabled and agreed upon by the Special Cabinet Committee on National Governance (JKKTN) chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on January 8.
The new format improved the previous asset declaration system introduced in 2018.
"Compared to 2018, where we only disclosed the properties we owned and their respective values, the new format is more precise and transparent. Now, every asset must be declared comprehensively, including its original price and date of acquisition.
"In addition, we also need to determine the current value of the asset and compare it with the original price," he said.
Kulasegaran was responding to Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman's supplementary question during a special chambers session of the Dewan Rakyat today.
On the proposed separation of the powers of the Attorney-General and public prosecutors, he said the government had initiated an evidence-based study involving three countries — Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom — to gather the best practices on the matter.
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said had recently conducted initial discussions with the Canadian Minister of Justice and Attorney-General, as well as the United Kingdom’s Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice.
”The meeting held during Datuk Seri Azalina's participation in the Commonwealth Law Ministers Meeting (CLMM 2024) in Zanzibar, Tanzania, yesterday marked the beginning of the empirical study regarding the proposed separation of powers, endorsed by the Unity government," Kulasegaran said.
In addition, the government is currently undertaking a thorough study of the proposal to establish a maximum term limit of two terms for the premiership.
"This involves engaging in discussions with stakeholders and conducting a comparative analysis of the tenure of ministers, prime ministers, and presidents in foreign countries with different types of government systems, including benevolent monarchies, constitutional monarchies, and republics," he said.
— Bernama
