Malaysians overwhelmingly demand a new political financing law before the next general election, according to findings released on September 8. Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said announced that the government will seek official written stances from registered political parties to secure their buy-in and prevent legislative delays.
Public Demand and Engagement Findings
The push for legislative reform reached a milestone at the Political Financing Convention 2026, held at the Asian International Arbitration Centre building in Kuala Lumpur. During the event, Datuk Punitha Silivarajoo, deputy director-general of policy and development for the Prime Minister’s Department’s Legal Affairs Division (BHEUU), presented results from extensive public consultations involving 1,544 participants nationwide across 12 engagement sessions held between June and November 2025.
The consultations captured perspectives from a diverse cross-section of society. Political parties and grassroots leaders made up 67 per cent of participants, while government agencies and academics accounted for 17 per cent. Non-governmental organisations, civil society groups, and youths represented 11 per cent, with the remaining five per cent coming from the business sector. The outreach engaged 32 political parties alongside 69 NGOs and civil society organisations. Overall, BHEUU conducted 18 engagement sessions, including 12 at the state level.
The consensus from these sessions was definitive. 100 per cent of the 1,544 participants agreed that Malaysia needs a dedicated political financing law, and 90.3 per cent insisted that the legislation must be tabled and passed in Parliament before the 16th general election.
Securing Political Buy-In to Prevent Legislative Delays
Despite public urgency, enacting the law requires navigating political realities. Azalina emphasized that the views of political parties must be formally secured before the Bill reaches Parliament because politicians themselves will cast the votes.
“So they are the users and they will vote on the law. So you must have them to have more say. If not, the delay of the Act may happen if there is no buy-in from political parties,” said Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform).
To accelerate this process, BHEUU has been directed to obtain official written responses from the approximately 72 registered political parties. Azalina noted that surveying individual politicians often yields personal opinions that fail to bind their organizations, making formal written stances essential for identifying supporters, opponents, and reasons or suggestions for improvement.
Refining Policy Parameters and Regulatory Frameworks
The groundwork for the proposed legislation has evolved over several years. The Cabinet agreed in principle to enact the law on September 8, 2023, following studies that BHEUU took over in May 2023. Officials are currently refining nine distinct policy parameters based on the extensive engagement sessions:
- Scope of application and designation of a regulatory body
- Contribution sources, limits, and the prohibition of foreign donations
- Traceable channels for receiving funds, reporting protocols, auditing, and disclosure
- Clear definitions for offences and penalties
Addressing the timeline of the process, Azalina replied at a press conference that The delay is not a political delay, but delay in terms of process and procedure done by BHEUU.
She added that procedural constraints should not be used as an excuse to delay the reform agenda, nor should the reform process be rushed simply to meet current public perceptions.
Legal Safeguards Against Corruption Perceptions
Speaking from her perspective as a lawyer, Azalina underscored that the absence of a governing framework leaves political figures vulnerable to corruption allegations when accepting donations. Without defined purposes, receipts, notification of amounts, or details of assistance provided, routine political contributions are easily misconstrued.
“Without an Act governing political funding, I believe more problems will arise in our country. Those providing assistance can easily be perceived as committing corruption because the purpose of the contribution is not clearly defined,” she added.
Azalina also noted that political funding is directly linked to democratic integrity, political accountability, and public confidence in the system of government, warning that a lack of clear rules creates opportunities for conflicts of interest, abuse of power, political corruption, and undue influence over decision-making.
Path Forward and Parliamentary Timeline
When pressed on when the Political Funding Bill will reach Parliament, Azalina noted that the question of when the 16th general election would be held should be directed to the prime minister, while the timeline for the Bill itself would depend on the work being done to prepare the text. While she stated, I wish it's as soon as possible,
she cautioned that comprehensive institutional legal reform inherently involves complex procedural steps.
