KUALA LUMPUR: Only 65 companies under the Companies Act are allowed to collect donations from the public, says Deputy Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Fuziah Salleh.
These 65 companies are limited guarantee companies. As such they are non-profit companies and have no shares.
The donations they collect from the public cannot be used to pay dividends to its members and can only be used to promote specific non-profit objectives.
These objectives include recreation, advancing trade, industry, arts, sciences and religion among others.
Fuziah said 2,949 limited guarantee companies registered with the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM) but only 65 can conduct public fundraising.
Recent cases of certain parties misusing donations for personal gain have shone a spotlight on such laws surrounding public fundraising.
Fuziah said a list of the 65 limited guarantee companies that can collect donations from the public is available on SSM's website.
"In Malaysia, besides SSM, other NGOs including those collecting public donations can also be registered under several other agencies such as the Registrar of Societies (RoS), Legal Affairs Division (BHEUU), and the Labuan Financial Services Authority (Labuan FSA)."
In the case of limited guarantee companies, they must seek permission from the authorities before collecting donations.
The collection and abuse of donations by individuals come under the purview of the police via the House to House and Street Collections Act, Fuziah said.
"The public is encouraged to lodge complaints with SSM if there are suspicions of offences involving companies violating provisions under the Companies and other acts administered by SSM.