KUALA LUMPUR: The Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4) has sounded the alarm bell over the concern of money politics in the country, after four Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) members of Parliament declared their support for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
The anti-graft watchdog said this signaled "failings" of the anti-party hopping law, and an "erosion" of the democratic process.
"If money continues to determine the course of Malaysian politics, governance will continue to be seen as a means of resource accumulation and control as opposed to actually protecting the welfare of Malaysian citizens," they said in a statement today.
The four Bersatu MPs - Kuala Kangsar MP Datuk Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid, Labuan MP Datuk Suhaili Abdul Rahman, Gua Musang MP Mohd Azizi Abu Naim and Jeli MP Zahari Kechik - had pledged support for the unity government to ensure they secure government allocations meant for their constituents.
C4 said the government needed to table a Political Funding Act that would guarantee funding to all constituencies, both aligned with the ruling coalition as well the opposition.
They said as the federal government had complete autonomy over funding for constituencies, coalition leaders of successive ruling governments would be able to solidify their position on the promises of constituency funding alone.
"This could result in MPs preemptively forming political alliances with the ruling coalition post-election with the anticipation that they will receive federal funding for their constituency.
"Hence a Political Funding Act that mandates the allocation of funds to all constituencies will make redundant the need to shift loyalties in order to obtain funds, it removes money as being a primary motivating factor in how politicians decide their allegiances."
They also noted that the issue also revealed the ineffectiveness of the anti-party hopping provisions under Article 49A of the Federal Constitution.
Despite declaring support for the Prime Minister, C4 said the MPs were not caught under the provisions as the law only compelled the vacating of a seat by an MP in the case of their resignation from the party.
Their expulsion from Bersatu would also still allow them to maintain their seats, they added.
"This odd feature essentially opens the loophole for new and volatile political alliances to be forged at any given moment – this is especially dangerous given the high degree of infiltration of money politics within our political systems.
"At the surface level, it is clear to see how this switching of party loyalties is an usurpation of the democratic principles.
"While it is true that these candidates were voted in by their constituents, they were also likely voted in based on their party or coalition affiliation.
"If politicians are allowed to change allegiances and parties at the drop of the hat, it renders the electoral system defunct," they said.
To address this, C4 suggested that apart from the Political Funding Act, an asset declaration framework needed to be put in place, to ensure that political funding would not be abused for personal gain.
They also said Article 49A of the Federal Constitution required refining to account for a wider scope of situations.