Anwar plans new law for GLCs and GLICs, cites Battersea losses and eFishery failure

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 27 — The government plans to introduce legislation to tighten governance at government-linked companies (GLCs) and government-linked investment companies (GLICs), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said.

He said the proposed law would set clearer, stricter rules, including limits on the powers and responsibilities of those leading the entities.

“Past experience has shown both strengths and weaknesses. These issues have been documented in Royal Commissions of Inquiry (RCIs), task force reports and White Papers on 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) and Felda, as well as in cases involving Tabung Haji. The breaches were numerous and clearly excessive, making them difficult to defend,” he said during the Prime Minister’s Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat.

He was responding to a supplementary question from Syahredzan Johan (DAP-Bangi) on measures to improve governance at GLCs, GLICs and statutory bodies to prevent a recurrence of scandals involving 1MDB and Tabung Haji.

Anwar said clear rules were also needed for subsidiaries of government agencies, adding that the government had not identified governance breaches on the scale previously seen at 1MDB and Tabung Haji.

Efforts to impose tighter controls had faced strong resistance from political and business elites accustomed to old practices, making political will essential to address the problem, he said.

“Governance must be strengthened, and the powers of those appointed to lead these entities must be clearly limited. They must be held accountable and must not treat these institutions as their personal or family property,” he said.

Earlier, Syahredzan had asked Anwar to explain why government departments, GLICs, GLCs and statutory bodies were involved in development projects, and how this could address public concerns without compromising their core mandates and responsibilities.

Anwar said investments by GLICs and GLCs helped local companies expand and attract private investment from domestic and foreign investors.

He cited Khazanah Nasional Bhd’s Dana Impak, which has invested RM2.6 billion since its establishment in 2021.

Khazanah initially acquired a 30 per cent stake in local dairy company Farm Fresh Bhd before it went public at a valuation of RM2.5 billion, Anwar said. Khazanah later divested its stake after the company had established itself.

Budget 2027 also allocated RM450 million through Jelawang Capital, Khazanah and the Retirement Fund Inc’s (KWAP) Dana Perintis to develop start-ups, he added.

Anwar also called for closer scrutiny of overseas investments to avoid a repeat of the Battersea Power Station redevelopment project in Britain.

He said the initial investment had been too high and incurred losses, although efforts were under way to recover the investment.

He was responding to a supplementary question from Hassan Karim (PKR-Pasir Gudang) on the amount invested by GLCs and GLICs in the Battersea redevelopment in London and its benefits to Malaysia’s economy.

Anwar said KWAP, Khazanah and Permodalan Nasional Bhd continued to seek investment opportunities at home and abroad.

However, the government had prioritised domestic investments over the past three years, setting an initial target of channelling at least 20 per cent of investments into Malaysia, he said.

The proportion would rise depending on the readiness and capacity of the institutions concerned, he added.

Anwar said most overseas investments had generated substantial returns, although some had incurred losses.

On KWAP’s investment in eFishery, he said the failed investment should not be taken as representative of the fund’s overall performance, noting that KWAP had recorded RM8 billion in profits. — Bernama

* Editor’s note: KWAP stands for Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (Diperbadankan) in Malay, or Retirement Fund Inc in English.

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吉隆坡，10月27日讯——首相拿督斯里安华·易卜拉欣表示，政府计划出台立法，加强对政府关联公司（GLC）和政府关联投资公司（GLIC）的治理。

他表示，拟议的法律将制定更清晰、更严格的规则，包括限制领导这些机构的人员的权力和责任。

“过去的经验表明，既有优势也有劣势。这些问题已在皇家调查委员会（RCI）、特别工作组报告以及关于一马发展公司（1MDB）和联邦土地发展局（Felda）的白皮书中有所记录，在朝圣基金局（Tabung Haji）的案例中也有所体现。违规行为数量众多且明显过分，难以辩解。”他在下议院首相质询时间说道。

他是在回应 Syahredzan Johan（民主行动党-万宜）提出的补充问题，该问题涉及如何改善官联公司、官联投资公司和法定机构的治理，以防止再次发生涉及 1MDB 和 Tabung Haji 的丑闻。

安华表示，政府机构的子公司也需要明确的规则，并补充说，政府尚未发现像 1MDB 和 Tabung Haji 那样大规模的治理违规行为。

他表示，加强管控的努力遭到了习惯于旧做法的政治和商业精英的强烈抵制，因此，政治意愿对于解决这个问题至关重要。

他说：“必须加强治理，必须明确限制被任命领导这些机构的人的权力。他们必须承担责任，不得将这些机构视为自己的个人或家族财产。”

此前，沙赫雷赞曾要求安华解释，为什么政府部门、政府投资公司、政府关联公司和法定机构要参与发展项目，以及这如何在不损害其核心使命和责任的情况下解决公众关切。

安华表示，政府关联投资公司和政府联营公司的投资帮助本地企业扩张，并吸引国内外投资者的私人投资。

他以国库控股旗下的 Dana Impak 为例，该公司自 2021 年成立以来已投资 26 亿令吉。

安华表示，国库控股最初收购了本地乳制品公司Farm Fresh Bhd 30%的股份，当时该公司以25亿令吉的估值上市。在Farm Fresh Bhd站稳脚跟后，国库控股随后出售了所持股份。

他还补充说，2027 年财政预算案还通过 Jelawang Capital、Khazanah 和退休基金公司 (KWAP) 的 Dana Perintis 拨款 4.5 亿令吉，用于发展初创企业。

安华还呼吁对海外投资进行更严格的审查，以避免英国巴特西发电站重建项目重演。

他表示，最初的投资额过高，造成了损失，不过目前正在努力追回投资。

他是在回答 Hassan Karim（人民公正党-巴西古当）提出的补充问题，该问题涉及政府关联公司和政府投资公司在伦敦巴特西重建项目中的投资额及其对马来西亚经济的益处。

安瓦尔表示，KWAP、国库控股和国民投资机构继续在国内外寻找投资机会。

不过，他表示，过去三年，政府一直优先考虑国内投资，最初的目标是将至少 20% 的投资引导到马来西亚。

他补充说，这一比例还会上升，具体取决于相关机构的准备情况和能力。

安华表示，大多数海外投资都产生了可观的回报，尽管有些投资出现了亏损。

关于KWAP对eFishery的投资，他表示，这笔失败的投资不应被视为该基金整体业绩的代表，并指出KWAP已录得80亿令吉的利润。——马新社

*编者注：KWAP 在马来语中代表 Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (Diperbadankan)，在英语中代表 Retirement Fund Inc。

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