Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) is appalled that the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Dato’ Seri Nazri Aziz in a written reply to Batu MP Chua Tian Chan, has stated that the RM 40 million a Sabah businessman was caught with in trying to smuggle into Malaysia from Hong Kong, were political contributions to the Sabah UMNO and not for the Chief Minister Musa Aman and that “no element of corruption was proven”.
The written response of Dato’ Seri Nazri raises many serious questions on the transparency and accountability of party finances. TI-M has been urging the government to regulate political financing in Malaysia. A TI-M Memorandum on Reforming Political Financing in Malaysia was submitted to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak in 2011.
Dato’ Seri Nazri has stated that the funds were contributions to the Sabah UMNO liaison body. He further stated that the MACC has concluded that “no element of corruption was proven” in the case. However, the MACC must investigate if corruption was a factor in the political contribution of RM 40 million.
TI-M calls for the full disclosure of the sources of the RM 40 million as a “political contribution” to Sabah UMNO. Absolute transparency is essential in political contributions to rule out the possibility of influence peddling in the political process.
Money politics contributes to the cancer of corruption. Political corruption is the mother of all corruption.
TI-M calls on the government to regulate political financing and for the immediate and full disclosure in the financing of politics in the country.
Issued by
Transparency International Malaysia
Ms Josie M Fernandez, Sec-General
