KUALA LUMPUR: The government today revealed its plans for the second term of the 11th Malaysian Plan (11MP) for the year 2018 to 2020, putting emphasis on enhancing the resilience of the nation's economy and the well-being of the people.
Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad in presenting the mid-term review of the 11MP in Parliament today, said efforts will be made to strengthen Malaysia's economic base and the people's prosperity based on six thrusts.
The first is reform of governance towards enhancing transparency and efficiency of public services. This is followed by strengthening inclusive development and well-being of the people.
The third thrust is moving towards a balanced regional development while the fourth is empowering human capital.
Enhancing environmental sustainability through green development is the fifth and lastly, to strengthen economic growth.
Dr Mahathir said the mandate given by the people is for the government to make changes and reforming governance becomes a priority.
"We have begun by changing leaders of critical institutions such as the judiciary, the Attorney-General's Chambers, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and the Election Commission (EC)," he said.
The prime minister remarked that governance within the government needed improvement and the aspect of transparency will be enhanced to prevent corruption and eradicate power abuse.
He said effective measures will be implemented to enhance the check and balance mechanism at all levels.
This, he added, include the strengthening of the legal system of administration by separating the role of the Attorney-General and the Public Prosecutor, to be managed by two different individuals.
"Parliamentary autonomy powers will be enhanced by reintroducing the Parliamentary Service Act 1963," he said.
Apart from that, electoral committees will be established and the committee will recognise the appointment of major positions at the MACC, the EC, the National Audit Department and the Judicial Appointments Commission.
"Certain commissions such as the MACC and the EC will also be directly responsible to Parliament," Dr Mahathir added.
He also pointed out the relationship between the Federal Government, the state government and the local government will be improved by restoring the spirit of federalism.
He added, the state government will be strengthened through the central power distribution process for several functions including public transport, social services and environmental protection.
"Immediate steps to reform the political system will be implemented. The terms of service of the Prime Minister, the Mentri Besar and the Chief Minister position will be limited to two terms. The Prime Minister also will not hold other portfolios," he said to applause from the members of Parliament.
He also said improvement of the electoral system will be implemented by clearing the voters' register, improving the postal voting process and provide fair access to the media.
The voting age limit will be reduced to 18 years and the law on political funding will be introduced, he added.
Dr Mahathir said the government is committed to enhancing integrity and accountability and eradicating corruption involving the public and private sectors.
"The MACC will be transformed as a fully independent body and the MACC Act 2009 will be reviewed thoroughly."
"Corruption prevention laws will also be strengthened by reviewing the Witness Protection Act 2009 and the Whistleblower Protection Act 2010."
Meanwhile, he added that the people needed a place to complain and the Malaysian Ombudsman will be established to investigate and report freely against government agencies.
"To enhance the integrity of the Police, the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission will be established," the prime minister said.
Reforms will also take place with regard to the management mechanism for public funds.
The strategy to be implemented is to improve the country's budget system, improve procurement management and strengthen the performance management framework, monitoring and evaluation, Dr Mahathir said.
"Implementation of the accrual accounting system will also be accelerated and the Financial Procedure Act 1957 will be reviewed."
On the government procurement procedures, Dr Mahathir said it will be enhanced by introducing a more relevant, comprehensive and effective legal framework, as well as enforcing open tender execution.
This, he said, includes reviewing the framework of public-private partnership projects to optimise resources.
Dr Mahathir said efforts will be intensified to strengthen the delivery of public services by reforming public sector institutions.
"A special task force will be set up to evaluate the roles and functions of various entities including statutory bodies and government-owned companies."
The prime minister said the local authorities (PBT), as the closest party to the people, will be strengthened in line with the needs of the people and the development of technology.
On another concern, the Prime Minister said there is a need to be concerned with people who lost their livelihood due to illness, accident and others.
"Thus, the social protection system will be strengthened. Additionally, the government's aid program, particularly those involving social security networks, will be reviewed to be more targeted."