Dismantle GLCs with ‘questionable purposes’, govt told

 

Political economist Edmund Terence Gomez said most of the responsibilities of GLCs could be handled by public institutions.

PETALING JAYA: A political economist has called on Putrajaya to dismantle GLCs with “questionable purposes” and redirect the funds used to finance such firms for health and social needs.

Such GLCs include unlisted firms, subsidiaries and associate companies, Edmund Terence Gomez said.

“About 90% of these companies, which can amount to hundreds, could be done away with and their responsibilities returned to public institutions,” Gomez, who has written extensively on GLCs, told FMT.

Gomez said he did not have an exact figure of how much could be saved from doing away with certain GLCs as there was scant information about the number of companies owned by the government.

However, the losses incurred due to scandals linked to some of these outfits could be used as a barometer.

1MDB cost Malaysia billions, while the littoral combat ship scandal — a project undertaken by Boustead Holdings Bhd’s subsidiary — involved RM9 billion, he said.

He lamented that GLCs have become an economic tool to obtain political support and offer jobs to party members.

“And this is why little effort is made to reform the system, regardless of the party or coalition in power,” he said.

“That is a grim fact,” he said, adding that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim could review and revamp GLCs and disband ones that were not “useful” if he wanted to. - FMT