Constitutional amendment to prohibit MPs getting involved in business

Written by Jeyaseelen Anthony, CPIAsia

Commentary

The National Feedlot Corporation (NFC) liaison as well as the Port Klang Free Trade Zone (PKFZ) failure have raised most concerns about transparency as well as corporate governance as well as the significance in promoting an honest tolerable corporate enlightenment in Malaysia.

The new NFC as well as PKFZ failure has shown us how inaugurated member as well as political leaders have authorised themselves to distinction from questionable commercial operation exchange by way of clientele as well as by assuming positions in companies where they might get profit.

The inherent requirement in Article 48(1) (c) of the Federal Constitution provides which inaugurated member in Parliament have been taboo from land any bureau of profit. If an MP is found to reason anoffice of profitbefore the choosing then the choosing is nothing as well as void, as well as if the MP is found to reason an bureau of distinction after choosing then the chair becomes automatically vacant.

The clarification of an'office profit'under the Constitution is the in front of in the open use where an income is derived. For all as well as intents as well as purpose, this clarification is too restrictive as well as is not gripping up with times. Society as well as politics has changed the good deal since 1957. Today any open bureau wields energy in the sense which MPs, generally those in government, have an value in influencing the buying of commercial operation contracts as well as office worker have been mostly attracted to this as well as thereby charity them remunerative positions as directors in their companies.

Even companies have been set up by the inaugurated member themselves to bid for remunerative supervision projects as well as tenders as well as in most cases they have an ! astray v alue over the alternative bidders because of the energy which they swing from their in front of as an MP in the supervision for e.g. if they have been Ministers as well as Deputy Ministers in the particular supervision ministry.

The Federal Constitution was drafted in 1957 as well as the drafters of the constitution would not have envisaged the situation similar to this at which time. As such the clarification of bureau of distinction in the Federal Constitution should not usually embody positions in the open use though additionally positions in the corporate sector.

With this in thoughts as well as in light of the NFC as well as PKFZ scandal, we believe which if Pakatan Rakyat or the Barisan Nasional comes in to energy with the dual thirds majority, the initial thing which they should do is to rectify the Federal Constitution to state which inaugurated representatives, senators included, have been not authorised to reason any in front of in any association which might expose them to get distinction from commercial operation ventures.

At the risk of being too idealistic, this prohibition might even be done to magnify to evident family members of the inaugurated deputy if there is the need for it. They must additionally be done to acknowledgement their seductiveness in any association prior to charity themselves as the candidate. If the candidate has an seductiveness in any association then he is disqualified from standing for elections.

Today you continue to see most of the inaugurated member sitting (especially those land ministerial positions) in the play of companies as eccentric directors, non-independent directors as well as even CEOs of the little companies, all deriving distinction in the little way or another. One usually needs to peruse annual reports of these companies to comprehend this.

The reason for such an legislative addition is quite viewable as it is transparent which commercial operation should be left to the busines! smen as MPs have been not businessman. They have been voted in to Parliament by the people to serve usually the people as well as not any commercial operation venture. That should be the summary the Constitution has to put forward.

Elected member should usually be concerned with proposing legislative changes in Parliament, debating upon proposed legislation, raising the aspirations as well as wants of the people in Parliament as well as portion their constituents. They have been paid to do the job.

An legislative addition similar to this would weed out candidates for open bureau who come in to politics, merely to find monetary gains. we will go so far as to contend which even State Constitutions must be amended to embody such the provision to apply to candidates looking choosing to the State Legislative Assembly as well as additionally to portion inaugurated member in the State Assemblies.

A study conducted by dual American academics in 1974 about the inaugurated member found that:

"Malaysian MPs consider it their shortcoming to represent the electorate as well as the special seductiveness groups in their constituencies, to teach their constituents about growth programmes, to attend attentively to complaints, to attend assembly in their constituencies at which suggestions can be processed, as well as to promulgate behind to the centre those matters which conflict allotment at internal levels".

The end of the study on top of obviously highlights the purpose of an MP. It is important for potential MPs as well as portion MPs to comprehend this as well as stay divided from commercial operation ventures.

The writer is the Consultant Fellow trustworthy to the Faculty of Law, University Malaya as well as the internal councillor at Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya.

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