Edmund Terence Gomez says no sitting prime minister has moved to dismantle state-business ties, which he says is riddled with graft and political abuse.

PETALING JAYA:

Politicians are not keen to institute public governance reforms in government-linked companies (GLCs), as the ecosystem makes a major political resource available to them, a new book has suggested.

Edmund Terence Gomez says the four prime ministers who have occupied the top job since 2018 were well aware that these GLCs offer access to public concessions and funds which could help consolidate their position in a deeply fractured political system.

In his book titled “Misgovernance: Grand Corruption in Malaysia”, Gomez claimed that these GLCs offer the government a “vast corporate base” through which it can implement political measures, including those created in response to economic crises.

No sitting prime minister has moved to dismantle state-business ties, which he said was riddled with graft and political abuse

Gomez said politicians who come into power “adopt (and) even adapt” the GLC ecosystem to suit their political and economic objectives.

The relationship between government and these GLCs inevitably allows for rent-seeking, selective patronage, cronyism and nepotism, he said.

Gomez said even Dr Mahathir Mohamad, during his second stint as prime minister, did not move to break up such ties. Instead, he “reframed” the GLC structure to consolidate his position and manoeuvred it to retain power, he said.

“(Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim) too, did not announce any reforms for this GLC ecosystem after declaring that curbing systemic corruption was his government’s principal agenda.”

Misgovernance Grand Corruption in Malaysia — The book Misgovernance: Grand Corruption in Malaysia, by political economist Edmund Terence Gomez is available at major bookshops.

Gomez also pointed to earlier prime minister, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who, he said, merely addressed management issues affecting public-listed GLCs but did little to prevent the littoral combat ship (LCS) saga which implicated the Armed Forces Fund Board (LTAT) and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Boustead Holdings Bhd (BHB).

He said there was a lack of knowledge or understanding among the public of the dense multi-layered GLC ecosystem and the extent of misgovernance.

“The public knows little about the serious undermining of a once well-functioning bureaucratic structure and the staggering influence that governing politicians have over the corporate sector through this GLC ecosystem, which can be abused in numerous ways to suit their interest.”

“Misgovernance: Grand Corruption in Malaysia” is on sale at MPH and Kinokuniya, Eslite, Tsutaya and Gerakbudaya bookshops.

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Politicians not keen on reforming state-business ecosystem, book claims

Author Edmund Terence Gomez says the existing complex GLC structure enables governing elites to consolidate their position in the political system.