PKR rep: Select committees need upright members or will be rubber stamps

Members of parliamentary select committees should be selected based on their outspokenness, maturity, integrity and past experience, according to PKR lawmaker Edmund Santhara Kumar.

The Segamat MP said this would ensure that select committees do not become rubber stamps for the powers that be.

Santhara Kumar suggested that the Dewan Rakyat speaker be empowered to pick qualified members of select committees based on merit.

“The appointments should take into account the academic qualifications and professional experience of these select committee members. They must also represent a broad spectrum of our citizenry and be able to represent the interests of minorities.

“The same criteria should be applied to other committees, as well as the Public Accounts Committee (PAC),” he added in a statement this afternoon.

The first-term MP said candidates should have a background in accounting, finance or possess broad experience in order to perform their tasks well.

Apart from this, the PKR national integration bureau chief questioned if current members represented the interests of all races, including those in East Malaysia.

Santhara Kumar also zeroed in on lawmakers who submitted incomplete or misleading asset declarations and those who failed to submit their declaration forms to the MACC.

“How can these people command the respect of the people?

“What is the worst-case scenario if these asset declarations and other qualifications are scrutinised thoroughly first before appointing someone to the key parliamentary committees? 

"Will it lead to surprises and mudslinging in the future by the opposition? Prevention is surely better than cure,” he added.

Furthermore, the corporate figure-turned-politician said if members of select committees have not served in any board environment or been corporate leaders themselves, how could they decide the best candidates for senior government positions?

“This is sadly happening with political appointments to the cabinet and the learning curve is too steep for them to learn the ropes before the next general election.

“We have to learn from the past mistakes made by the previous BN government which led to its fall,” he said.

Santhara Kumar listed several questions regarding existing members of select committees such as the criteria for their selection and who submitted their names.

“Was there proper due process such as a nomination and an election to ensure that the best candidates are placed into these select committees?

“What is their political alignment within the Pakatan Harapan component parties? When were these appointments made and who was consulted before they were appointed?

“What are the merits of their appointments? What are their past achievements to justify such appointments?

“If members are picked merely based on their political alignment, how can they be free from their political alignment and bias?” he added.

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