MPs and senators must declare assets before October 1

After 6 hours of debate in Dewan Rakyat, the special motion for all members of parliament and senators along with their immediate family members to declare their assets was approved.

They must declare their monthly salary, assets in the country and abroad, plus the assets of their spouses and children below the age of 18.

All parliamentary members and senators have three months to do so as the dateline was set on October 1. Individual who make a false declaration could face a maximum jail of three years and a fine under Act 783 (Statutory Declarations Act 1960) and Section 199 of the Penal Code.

Prominent lawmakers who opposed the special motion are PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man and former Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein.

Tuan Ibrahim said that that it is un-Islamic to declare assets. He claimed that Islamic teachings do not allow Muslims to publicly disclose their asset to the public as it could lead to security issues.

On the other hand, Hishammuddin said that the assets declaration motion is a “fishing expedition”. He said that the government made the special motion as a disguise to gather information from the opposition lawmakers.

Additionally, the Sembrong MP said that government should lead by example and declare their assets first before asking the others.

As of July 3, 12 parliamentary members from the government have yet to declare their assets.

Meanwhile, six out of the 127 MPs who declared their assets have yet to disclose their total value.

According to the asset declaration, the MP with the highest number in total asset is Datuk Seri Edmund Santhara (Segamat) at more than RM132 million. In second position is Beruas MP Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham with RM77 million in total assets.

Only then is the Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad (Langkawi), with his total assets amounting to roughly RM32.3 million. Followed by his son Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir at approximately RM25 million.

But for monthly income, Mukhriz is at the top, earning more than RM105 thousand a month. Whereas, his father Tun Mahathir has a monthly income of roughly RM75 thousands.

For more information regarding the asset declaration, readers may visit the portal run by MACC through the link, https://mydeclaration.sprm.gov.my/.