To spend or not to spend: MP's dilemma under lopsided allocation system
Debating in the Dewan Rakyat, officiating events, taking care of the poor’s welfare and repairing clogged drains and broken streetlights are among the expectations that people have on their members of parliament (MPs). In the eyes of some Malaysians, their MPs are supposed to be a “superhero” who does all the above and more.
These expectations are not surprising as it is a well-known fact that MPs have a relatively high salary as well as access to government allocations. Many people believe that an MP has access to large amounts of money and therefore they can solve almost every problem.
However, is this perception of a Malaysian MP’s job true?
Malaysiakini interviewed several elected representatives from both sides of the divide to get a better understanding of the expectations placed on an MP, their duties and responsibilities and more specifically, how they spend their salaries and allocations.
Differences in allocation
Every MP is allotted a certain amount of funds for use to improve their constituency.
However, this amount differs between a government MP and an opposition MP.
When Pakatan Harapan was in power, its MPs supposedly can apply for up to RM3.5 million in 2020, which is split into RM2 million for development purposes while the other RM1.5 million is for grant and donation purposes.
In 2020, East Malaysian backbencher MPs from Harapan were given an additional RM500,000 on top of the RM3.5 million.
Every government MP also receives an additional RM300,000 allocation per annum, or RM25,000 a month, for their service centre’s expenses.
Meanwhile, for opposition MPs, they can only apply for up to RM100,000 a year for their constituencies, and they do not receive any additional allocation for their service centres.
This means that opposition MPs have to pay for the expenses of their service centres out of their own pocket.
Some BN MPs had cried foul over this matter during the Harapan administration as the coalition did not provide funding to all MPs to run their service centres as promised in its election manifesto.
After Perikatan Nasional (PN) took over Putrajaya in early 2020, it is unclear how much allocation a government MP and an opposition MP would be getting 2021.
Many opposition MPs who spoke to Malaysiakini said they would have to spend part of their monthly salary to run their service centres in years to come, such as paying for the centre’s rental and the wages of their staff.
“For me, the salary and allowances are enough, if that is your take-home pay.
“But if it includes the running of a service centre, then definitely it is not enough. (An MP’s salary) should not include the running of a service centre, because it is a different thing.
“Without government allocation, it is very difficult to run our service centres,” said Tanjong Malim MP Chang Lih Kang.
Most of the opposition MPs who spoke to Malaysiakini said the expenses of their service centres could run upwards of RM15,000 a month.
Only one opposition MP said their service centre expenses were less than RM10,000 a month.
Some MPs have also said they will eventually have to fundraise to run their service centres next year.
Spend like an MP
With allocations of RM3.5 million (government MPs) and RM100,000 (opposition MPs), how do MPs find ways to utilise the funds for their constituency?
For the record, MPs are not given their allocation in a lump sum; instead, they have to apply to the government for specific purposes they intend to use the allocation for, which will then be vetted and approved by the relevant agencies.
Based on Malaysiakini’s interviews, government MPs who have more allocations can afford to apply for larger development projects like building community centres, a futsal court and even small roads for rural areas.
For example, Julau MP Larry Sng, whose constituency is a rural area, said his allocation back when he was a government MP was used to build or improve roads or to assist in repairing longhouses and building suspension bridges.
Lumut MP Hatta Ramli also said he managed to apply for an allocation to build a futsal court in his constituency to promote a healthier lifestyle before the Harapan government fell in February this year.
MPs from both sides also used their allocations to provide grants to non-government organisations, associations or schools, which are then used for community-enriching purposes like running sports tournaments, holding health talks and so on.
Bandar Kuching MP Kelvin Yii said he prefers to use his allocation to focus on his priorities of health and education in his constituency such as holding talks to raise awareness on mental health and providing grants to schools.
Meanwhile, for four-term Padang Rengas MP Nazri Aziz, he said he usually leaves the handling of his allocation to a committee in his Umno division in the constituency.
“I leave it to my action committee… to decide on projects we should finance in my division.
“They know how to allocate proportionately,” he told Malaysiakini.
Salaries not just for themselves
Back in April 2015, the monthly salary of MPs increased to RM16,000 from the previous RM6,508.59 after the amendment to the Members of Parliament (Remuneration) Act 1980 was passed in the Dewan Rakyat.
Aside from their salary, MPs also enjoy allowances and can make claims for several types of allowances, including meeting, entertainment, special payment, monthly travelling, driver, and meals, among others.
According to the Members of Parliament (Remuneration) Act 1980, the total salary MPs would receive, including allowances, amounts to RM25,700 a month.
MPs would not be elected in the first place without the support of their party, and as such, they have to contribute a portion of their salary to their party. This varies among the different parties, but it usually ranges between 15 percent to 25 percent of their take-home salary.
Some opposition MPs told Malaysiakini they end up with only a small amount of personal savings every month after paying their party contributions, their service centre expenses and their own financial commitments and daily living expenses.
On the other hand, Nazri said he uses his salary and allowances to pay for his staff or the running of his Umno division in Padang Rengas.
“All the allowance for staff, such as researchers or my driver, I don’t take at all. They (salary and allowances) go to the staff.
“My salary is (also) used to pay for electricity and the Umno staff. The money goes into my account, and then it goes to my staff in Parliament and the staff in Padang Rengas,” he said.
Nazri said before he joined politics, he was a lawyer and businessman, so he has enough personal savings to sustain his monthly expenditures.
All the MPs Malaysiakini spoke to also said they have to use their own money to give direct cash aid to their constituents.
Sometimes it would be for constituents who visit their service centres asking for aid for various reasons, such as medical expenses or helping the elderly.
Other times, they contribute a small amount when they attend funerals, weddings or other programmes in their respective constituencies.
In the “Spend Like an MP” game, Malaysiakini asks readers to earn as many popularity points as possible while maintaining their finances.
While there is a perception that handing out allocation and direct financial aid could serve to garner popularity among the rakyat, the MPs have said it is not as simple as that.
Sng said these allocations and financial aid had become something that is expected by their constituents, and it is often going the extra mile that leaves a more positive impression on the people.
“There are two emotions. One is people’s expectations, which is the bare minimum. For example, helping to pay for someone’s medical expenses.
“It is also part of the culture as people are not rich. Pakan (a state constituency under Julau) is the poorest district in all of Malaysia.
“They expect their MPs to solve their problems and not add to their burden. Everyone expects something (from the MPs) because all MPs are providing the same things.
“Beyond that is the ‘wow’ factor. Doing something the people did not expect,” he explained.
Chang said the rakyat are also smart enough not to base their support solely on the amount of allocation or the financial aid spent by an MP, especially for opposition MPs.
“They know the opposition does not have much allocation,” he said.
All the MPs from both sides of the divide also said the intention of aiding their constituents is not to buy their support but to address the problems faced by the rakyat directly.
The MPs also said it is more important to be visible in their constituencies and to connect to their constituents on a more personal level.
Multiple roles of an MP
In Malaysia, there are many expectations placed on an MP to not only legislate in the Dewan Rakyat but also to help their constituents directly with their allocations and salaries.
But some believe that this is not the way things should be.
For many of the MPs from Pakatan Harapan who spoke to Malaysiakini, they believe that an MP’s role should focus on being a legislator in Parliament, instead of handling large sums of allocations for their constituency.
“If we are serious legislators, we should be holding consultations and town hall meetings with our constituents," Chang said.
“We need to convey to them about the laws that have passed; we need to research the bills in Parliament, put in motions and maybe even Private Members’ Bills, which requires a lot of research.
“A substantial amount of time is spent dealing with allocation which is not very meaningful."
Yii believes that handling allocation for the development of their constituencies should not be part of an MP’s job, but rather it should be the duty of either the local council, the state government or the federal government.
“In principle, I believe that MPs should only be given money to run their office and maybe some welfare money.
“But in terms of infrastructure and things like that, that should come under the different layers of government,” he said.
Chang also prefers for all MPs to have zero allocation so that they can focus on their role as a legislator.
This would also solve the issue of the difference in allocation between government MPs and opposition MPs, he said.
Instead, he said, the funds should be channelled to local councils so that they can better address the local issues in the constituencies.
“More funds should be channelled to elected local councillors because all this while, they have been doing the work (of addressing local issues).
“If every single MP does not have an allocation, that would solve the problem (of the differences in funding).
“Either you give equal allocation to all MPs or none at all. I prefer the second option,” he said.
While Hatta also agrees that ideally, an MP’s role should purely be as a legislator, he recognises that the reality is different.
He wished that he would be re-elected based on his performance in the Dewan Rakyat, but he said the reality is that his performance back in his constituency is far more important.
“In an ideal situation, an MP’s main role should be as legislators, but in Malaysia, the definition is different.
“This is especially so under the Westminster parliamentary system, where the constituents select us, so you are representing your constituency.
“I still believe our role should be as legislators and we must be astute in debating and designing laws for the country,” Hatta said.
Bangi MP Ong Kian Ming and Sng differ from their colleagues on this matter, saying that the allocation provided by the government to the MPs do play an important role.
“There are other needs which an MP needs to take care of in his or her constituency.
“The allocations are often a way to address needs of voters more directly without going through too much bureaucracy,” Ong said.
For Ong, whose constituency has the largest number of voters in Malaysia, he considers his allocation of RM100,000 a year as insufficient to address the needs of his constituents.
Sng, who represents a rural constituency in Sarawak, believes that government allocation has a big impact in servicing a rural constituency.
He said this is because rural areas do not have the type of developments already present in most urban constituencies and hence, the need for an MP to provide direct allocation into infrastructure developments in a rural area is much greater.
Nazri, meanwhile, believes that an MP should work for the people because it is the people who voted for them to be their elected representative.
“It is very important for me to service my constituents. At the end of the day, the question is ‘what does my MP do for me? Is he nice to me?’
“We have our own standards in Malaysia. Do not think like the Europeans or the Americans,” he said.
In the US and some European democracies, the elected representatives at the federal level are purely legislators who focus on their duties in their Congress or Parliament.
Local councils can do more
Some MPs have said that the local councils should have a larger role to play in addressing local issues which have become part of an MP’s responsibility.
In order to facilitate this, Hatta said local council elections would foster a stronger sense of responsibility among local councillors in addressing the needs of the areas they serve.
“Things such as clogged drains and so on, it should be done by the local councillors, not an MP.
“If the current local authorities are always on their toes and reacting fast, they can do this.
“If there are local elections, their sense of responsibility would be stronger,” he said.
Nazri also acknowledged that civil servants who are appointed as local councillors would have less attachment to the districts they serve.
However, he believes that local council elections would become too politicised.
“If there is politics at the lowest level, it will become too racialised, too polarising, and it would be too much cost as well,” he said.
If a district has a majority of one race, the local elections could result in all local councillors being of one race, he explained.
Not only that, but he said an MP also has more influence than local councillors to pressure district officers to address local issues.
Housing and Local Government Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin had pushed for local government elections during her time serving under the Pakatan Harapan administration.
However, Zuraida – who is now serving her second stint as housing and local government minister under the PN administration – has since U-turned on the issue, saying that the government will not hold local government elections.
PN government allies from Umno, PAS and GPS had earlier voiced opposition towards the idea, and Zuraida had later conceded that she would drop the idea if Putrajaya said no.
With legislators still deeply divided over the issue, it seems there is still a long way to go before Malaysia sees any changes to an MP’s role. - Mkini
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