Release 2018 reform panel’s report, Ambiga tells govt

 

Some local authorities like Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur wield too much power, says Ambiga Sreenevasan who calls for local elections to be reintroduced to keep them in check.

PETALING JAYA: Lawyer-activist Ambiga Sreenevasan has called for the release of a 2018 report by an institutional reform committee set up by the Pakatan Harapan government.

Ambiga said the committee made numerous recommendations on the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, Sedition Act, Sosma, police misconduct, the death penalty, and other matters.

“The committee came up with a comprehensive report. I suggest the government release the report for public discussion and let’s see what reforms can be done,” she told FMT in an interview when asked about the reforms she would like to see under the unity government.

Ambiga said the government must press on with strengthening the MACC and making it accountable to Parliament.

“Then, you have the police, they have come up with a watered-down Independent Police Conduct Commission bill” (on police misconduct). “That is not good enough, the government must be brave and bold and take on this task of police misconduct more meaningfully,” she said.

The former Bar Council president said these reforms need to be carried out urgently as the push for reforms could be derailed by another Sheraton Move-like manoeuvre, referring to political moves that led to the collapse of the PH government in 2020.

Bring back local elections

Ambiga said another key reform the government should embark on is to restore local council elections, a recommendation in the Athi Nahappan Report of 1968.

She said local councils now wield too much power without sufficient checks and balances.

“Look at the construction that is going on in Kuala Lumpur, it’s horrendous. How is it that some developers seem to be getting all their projects approved? The local government (Kuala Lumpur City Hall) wields a lot of power.”

Local elections were suspended when an emergency was declared during the Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation. The elections were later abolished under the Local Government Act 1976. Local councillors are now appointed by the state governments.

Proponents of local elections say these are important to ensure better delivery of services on the ground. - FMT