Call for Umno to admit TH shortcomings will likely be ignored, says analyst

 Syaza Shukri says the party will probably disregard Khairy Jamaluddin’s suggestion as a personal view.

Analyst Syaza Shukri said Umno will likely argue that it was not the sole party responsible for any mismanagement of Tabung Haji.

PETALING JAYA:

An analyst believes that Khairy Jamaluddin’s call for Umno to acknowledge its shortcomings in managing Tabung Haji (TH) will likely fall on deaf ears.

Syaza Shukri of International Islamic University Malaysia said the party would likely disregard its former youth chief’s suggestion as his personal view and not that of the grassroots because Khairy was no longer seen as representing the grassroots.

“The best thing for Umno to do is to follow what Khairy suggested – to be honest about the governance failures that plagued the pilgrims’ fund,” she told FMT.

However, she said Umno would likely point out that it was not the sole party responsible for any mismanagement of TH, or that the fund was only plagued by issues between 2014 and 2017.

The 252-page royal commission of inquiry (RCI) report on the investigation into TH’s management and operations from 2014 to 2020 was declassified and released last Wednesday.

The RCI found, among others, that TH had concealed the true state of its finances for years, reporting a RM3.4 billion profit for 2017 when it should have recorded a RM1.4 billion net loss under proper accounting standards – a shortfall of almost RM4.8 billion.

On Tuesday, Khairy said Umno would show that the party was changing for the better if it admitted to these weaknesses and failures.

Ahmad Zaharuddin Sani Ahmad Sabri of Global Asia Consulting said Khairy’s call for Umno to acknowledge its failures in managing TH was more than just a criticism of the party.

“It is an implicit admission that the political culture entrenched within the country’s economic institutions has long been a liability for Malaysia.”

Zaharuddin also asked why billion-ringgit financial institutions and GLCs remained vehicles for the appointment of political figures even though the public ultimately bore the risks.

“This is no longer an Umno issue, but a bipartisan disease that has taken root over the past few decades,” he said. - FMT