Deputy law and institutional reform minister M Kula Segaran told a special chambers session in the Dewan Rakyat that the board, which is responsible for the Certificate in Legal Practice (CLP) examination, held RM55.2 million in funds – mainly collected from examination candidates’ fees – as of Sept 30.
The board is headed by the attorney-general.
He also said LPQB’s accounts were only audited between the periods of 1984-1989 and 1992-2006 by external auditors.
Kula said the board, which is governed by the Legal Profession Act 1976, was not required to present its annual report to any minister or authority.
“However, the call for the board to furnish its annual reports to the minister and Parliament is being looked at and will be brought to the Cabinet’s attention soon. The reforms are to ensure that there is good governance, transparency and accountability by LPQB to the Parliament,” he said.
Kula was responding to a question from S Kesavan (PH-Sungai Siput) who had asked why the annual reports of the board were not made public or shown to the minister in charge.
Kesavan said the LPQB took money from examination candidates, many of whom relied on financial support from their parents. He asked why no audits had been conducted since 2007 and called on the government to take immediate action.
Dewan Rakyat deputy speaker Ramli Nor, who was chairing the session, said such a lack of oversight was unacceptable and “shocking”.
Kula agreed that the situation was “shocking” and that the lack of transparency and accountability must be fixed.
He said LPQB’s director had reported the frequent leadership changes as a reason for lapses in oversight.
Kula said amendments to the Legal Profession Act were scheduled for debate in December and provisions to ensure LPQB’s accountability to Parliament would “definitely be included”.
“Even a two-year gap would be concerning, but 17 years speak volumes,” he said.
LPQB’s administrative and operational expenses over seven years were also revealed, totalling RM20.54 million. In 2017, costs recorded were RM2.61 million, followed by RM2.65 million in 2018, and RM2.74 million in 2019.
Expenses dropped to RM1.93 million in 2020 but rose to RM3.04 million in 2021. In 2022, costs increased further to RM3.67 million, and in 2023, LPQB’s highest expenditure reached RM3.89 million.
Kula said the funds in the LPQB were used to support its core roles, including running the CLP examinations, accrediting and approving law programmes, visiting recognised universities to ensure compliance, and conducting the Malay language proficiency examination.
The funds also cover LPQB’s office expenses, such as staff salaries, employee benefits like retirement and social security contributions, office rent, utilities, medical insurance, supplies, office maintenance and legal fees.