PARLIAMENT The government has pushed back the debate on amendments to the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) of Malaysia Act in Parliament by at least three months following week-long pressure from PKR leaders who have expressed concerns about the amendment.
The government had tabled an amendment to set up an IRB investment panel, which raised concerns about the transparency of a proposed investment process using taxpayers' money.
Deputy Finance Minister Ahmad Maslan tabled a motion to push the bill’s debate to the next sitting.
PKR’s Kelana Jaya MP Wong Chen (right), who first raised the issue, described the move as a “sweet victory for the rakyat”.
Despite the government’s assurances that the IRB will only use its 1.5 percent commission from overall tax revenue for the investment panel, Wong Chen insisted that there must be a legal guarantee on the matter.
“Even if the 1.5 percent is maintained, this is not a legal guarantee, the finance minister has legal powers to expand the size of IRB funds by way of grants,” he said.
“What has been described is the current practice of IRB. It is not a guarantee that abuses may not happen if the amendments are passed,” he added.
He hoped that the minister in charge would take the “short reprieve” to quickly repair these amendments.
Under the current bill, the Finance Minister can appoint a majority of those on the panel, and gives him power to increase IRB’s funds by any means.
The government had tabled an amendment to set up an IRB investment panel, which raised concerns about the transparency of a proposed investment process using taxpayers' money.Deputy Finance Minister Ahmad Maslan tabled a motion to push the bill’s debate to the next sitting.
PKR’s Kelana Jaya MP Wong Chen (right), who first raised the issue, described the move as a “sweet victory for the rakyat”.
Despite the government’s assurances that the IRB will only use its 1.5 percent commission from overall tax revenue for the investment panel, Wong Chen insisted that there must be a legal guarantee on the matter.
“Even if the 1.5 percent is maintained, this is not a legal guarantee, the finance minister has legal powers to expand the size of IRB funds by way of grants,” he said.
“What has been described is the current practice of IRB. It is not a guarantee that abuses may not happen if the amendments are passed,” he added.
He hoped that the minister in charge would take the “short reprieve” to quickly repair these amendments.
Under the current bill, the Finance Minister can appoint a majority of those on the panel, and gives him power to increase IRB’s funds by any means.
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