GOVERNMENT-LINKED companies (GLCs) must be restructured and handled transparently to drive the economy forward, said a think-tank.

Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (Ideas) CEO Tricia Yeoh said there is little scrutiny of GLCs, with politicians being appointed to boards of directors without providing robust oversight.

“It is problematic appointing politicians as GLC heads because they make decisions on behalf of the entire commercial entity and, sometimes, there are conflicts of interest,” Yeoh told a webinar organised by Institute Darul Ehsan (IDE) last night.

“They may not use the GLC for the right purposes and this causes some dysfunction in the way the economy is structured,” she said in the forum titled “Restructuring the Malaysian Economy”.

Yeoh said the previous Pakatan Harapan government made efforts to uphold transparency by introducing the National Anti-Corruption Plan (NACP), adding that the role of GLCs in the economy should be evaluated and an audit conducted.

“We don’t know how many GLCs exist in our country at the moment, including under the Finance Ministry. Underperforming GLCs, which cause a strain on public finances, should be shut down,” she said.

“We should also provide data on the salaries of all GLC chairmen and board directors, which will improve public accountability.”

Renowned economist Prof Jomo Kwame Sundaram, meanwhile, stressed the importance of checks and balances in driving the country’s economy forward.

He said while a government can come up with a sound economic plan, without proper evaluation, these can turn out to be disastrous.

“We can see this almost everywhere; without proper control, a good plan can be a bad plan. That is why we need checks and balances. We mean proper control, not balance in your bank accounts.

“If we rely solely on ‘good intentions’, that is not good enough. We need a system of control,” Jomo said.

Umno deputy Youth chief Shahril Hamdan, meanwhile, said defending democracy should also be a priority.

“I disagree with the call to declare an emergency. We must defend our democracy and every party should reject the call for emergency,” Hamdan said.

“I believe that it can be a form of checks and balances on the existing government, as well as on the economy and expenditure.”

The forum last night also featured Setiawangsa MP Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad and others academics. – November 10, 2020.