Malay unity means little without good governance, says analyst

 Ahmad Zaharuddin Sani says the failures at Tabung Haji, LTAT and 1MDB show that accountability matters more than appeals for political unity.

The bottom line is that Malay interests are not necessarily safeguarded by political dominance, says Ahmad Zaharuddin Sani Ahmad Sabri of Global Asia Consulting.

PETALING JAYA:

Malay unity is meaningless if public institutions headed by Malays are mismanaged, an analyst said.

Ahmad Zaharuddin Sani Ahmad Sabri of Global Asia Consulting said the community bears the brunt when there is no accountability in agencies and institutions such as Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) and the Armed Forces Fund Board (LTAT).

Given that such institutions are usually led by political appointees who may not be professionally qualified, Zaharuddin argued, political control also “means little” without competent management, proper scrutiny, and accountability.

“The bottom line is that Malay interests are not necessarily safeguarded by political dominance,” he told FMT.

Ahmad Zaharuddin Sani Ahmad Sabri.

“Malay unity” has become a battlecry for the Barisan Nasional-Perikatan Nasional alliance but the financial problems in TH, LTAT and 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) have barely been raised during the recent Johor and Negeri Sembilan elections.

Zaharuddin pointed out that Malay individuals were entrusted with the management of TH, LTAT and 1MDB. “Unfortunately, each and every one of them has been weakened by poor decisions and failures accumulated over years,” he added.

He noted that government-owned Urusharta Jamaah (UJSB) eventually had to acquire TH’s underperforming assets worth RM9.7 billion for RM19.9 billion, giving TH an effective RM10.2 billion balance sheet rescue.

The government also approved an outlay of RM17.8 billion to cover the expected shortfall in UJSB’s sukuk obligations, ultimately shifting the financial burden from TH to taxpayers.

Zaharuddin said similar concerns arose at LTAT, where financial problems at its main investment arm, Boustead Holdings Bhd, could lead to the loss of billions of ringgit belonging to armed forces personnel.

He said 1MDB presented an even larger burden, with the government having paid RM42.5 billion in principal and interest while another RM8.9 billion remained outstanding.

“These failures do not stay inside the institutions. The cost eventually returns to the rakyat,” he said.

Zaharuddin said every ringgit used to rescue a public fund or repay debts arising from past failures was money that could otherwise have been spent on healthcare, education and food security.

He said this made poor governance a bread-and-butter issue, rather than an abstract debate about financial management.

With another election approaching, Zaharuddin said, the more meaningful test of leadership was whether institutions were professionally managed, losses were confronted early and those responsible were held accountable.

The royal commission of inquiry into the TH problem revealed that the pilgrimage fund faced a serious financial crisis in 2017 after paying high hibah and using “creative accounting” that obscured its true financial position.

A Kadir Jasin.

Veteran journalist A Kadir Jasin said the findings were unsurprising when viewed alongside 1MDB and other scandals under the former Barisan Nasional government, adding that they should have angered the Malays.

However, he questioned whether such anger would last, saying Malays were “easily pacified”.

Meanwhile, a former ACCA Malaysia advisory committee president Khalid Ahmad described the practices uncovered at TH as a “massive and diabolical Ponzi scheme”.

He said the breach was especially serious because TH carried an Islamic amanah to safeguard the savings of Muslims hoping to perform the haj. - FMT