KUALA LUMPUR: The Supply (Budget) Bill 2027, which was passed at the policy stage following a two-week debate, was a key highlight of this week’s Dewan Rakyat sitting, which also addressed a range of other issues, including administrative governance, national development and public welfare.
Budget 2027, tabled by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Oct 9, was approved by a majority of Dewan Rakyat members on Thursday, allowing the Bill to proceed to the committee stage, scheduled from Nov 2 to 26.
Other issues in the spotlight this week included government clarifications on national financial management, the recovery of assets linked to 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), and the role of government-linked investment companies (GLICs) in advancing the public well-being agenda.
During Ministers’ Question Time on Tuesday, Anwar announced that the government was considering a proposed Government-Owned Entities Bill to tighten the governance of government-linked companies (GLCs) and related agencies, while preventing financial irregularities such as those previously seen in cases involving 1MDB, Felda and Tabung Haji.
He said the proposal aimed to establish clearer legal provisions and regulations to ensure that every government-owned entity, including its subsidiaries, was subject to effective regulatory mechanisms.
Anwar also emphasised the need to prohibit political interference in the selection of projects and investments by GLCs and GLICs, ensuring that decisions were made professionally, meticulously and prudently.
“Government-linked institutions mandated to safeguard the interests of the Bumiputera and the Muslim community must set an example in the practice of good governance, specifically regarding integrity, transparency and management accountability,” he said.
On the rights of Sabah and Sarawak, Anwar said the government stood by its decision to provide larger development allocations based on the geographical and infrastructural needs of both states.
Meanwhile, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said informed the Dewan Rakyat that several policy recommendations for the drafting of a Political Financing Bill would be presented to the Special Select Committee (SSC) in the near future.
She said this would facilitate a review and allow further feedback to be gathered before the Bill was finalised for consideration by the Cabinet.
In another development, the Energy Commission is developing a comprehensive framework and guidelines on self-generation of electricity and the use of renewable energy in the data centre sector, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy Transition and Water Transformation Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said.
Issues concerning health, the environment, online safety and the cost of living were also addressed in the Dewan Rakyat through question-and-answer sessions and during the winding-up of the 2027 Budget debate by the relevant ministers.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad announced that the ministry intended to introduce a “cottage hospital” concept in rural areas, in addition to expanding the outsourcing of hospital services across 16 areas by 2027, as part of efforts to strengthen public healthcare services.
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability will submit a proposal to develop a drought action plan to the National Disaster Management Council, with the aim of strengthening preparedness for weather-related impacts arising from the El Niño phenomenon.
Meanwhile, the BUDI MADANI initiative was cited as one of the country’s successes in implementing targeted subsidies to ease the public’s cost-of-living burden while curbing leakages in fuel subsidies, said Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan.
“This is one of the measures we have introduced to help the people reduce their cost-of-living burden, while simultaneously increasing their disposable income,” he said during his winding-up speech on the Supply Bill 2027 (Budget 2027) at the policy stage for the Ministry of Finance.
The Dewan Rakyat sitting is scheduled to run for 37 days, ending on Dec 8.
