S Pathmawathy
May 8, 10
12:05pm
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has refuted the imputation that it is probing Lembah Pantai parliamentarian Nurul Izzah Anwar on her monthly allowance.
Nurul was reported to have received a “survey” form requesting details of expenditure of her monthly allowance as a member of parliament.
The commission belatedly issued a statement by director of inspection and consultations Shaharudin Khalid saying, “MACC wishes to clarify that no investigation is being carried out on Nurul as reported.
“MACC is actually running a survey relating to the provisions given to state assembly representatives and members of parliament.”
Nurul, who is one of the 10 Pakatan Rakyat Federal Territory MPs, is believed to be the only one asked to complete the form.
Malaysiakini was given a copy of the survey form, which requires the expenditure breakdown of allocations set aside for state assembly representatives and members of parliament.
The survey, which was in the form of a questionnaire, also enquired about distribution, usage and weaknesses of the system as well as requested feedback for purposes of improvement.
‘Survey not investigation’
Although it was not compulsory for Nurul to respond, she questioned the necessity of the questionnaire as she is only paid an allowance in the form of a salary.
MACC’s statement clarified that, “This survey will evaluate the effectiveness of systems and procedures for any necessary improvements to avoid any risks, including corruption and the negative perceptions that exist on use (of allocations).”
It added that the study is an initiative undertaken by the MACC to review the system and procedures of the organisation.
“We hope that the state assembly representatives and members of parliament who receive the survey form do not misunderstand that they are being investigated by the MACC,” it concluded.
The survey has sparked another point of contention among Federal Territory opposition MPs, who fall under the administration of the federal government.
They are querying why they are excluded from receiving the special RM1 million in allocations given to Barisan Nasional MPs and division chiefs, including the three Barisan MPs under the Federal Territory.
