The Malaysian Insight

COMMUNICATIONS and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo said that the current anti-graft investigation into the Film Development Corporation had sparked the need for a shakeup of the ministry’s other departments and agencies to ensure they were running in a smooth and transparent manner.

Some of the departments currently being reviewed and evaluated are the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission and the Malaysian Digital Economy Corporation.

“I think there are no big issues with the current systems for certain departments. But for other departments, I see a need to look again at entire organisations,” he said today.

Gobind said there were issues regarding government funding and how it was being utilised at Finas.

“There is the problem of where the funds are channelled (to), and there is a need to test and revise the whole funding process,” he said.

“What we need is a complete reform and reset of all the procedures here, so that we can ensure that the funding is being fully used.”

He also confirmed that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission collected statements from Finas in an investigation into several questionable financial allocations last year.

Gobind said pending the outcome of the probe, Finas will be put through a complete overhaul of its government funding procedures.

“I only can confirm that I have been informed by MACC that the investigations are being done.

“It involves last year’s funding.”

On June 7, MACC officers raided the Finas headquarters. Finas is the central government agency for the film industry and is involved in the promotion of filming in Malaysia.

Gobind said part of the restructuring will include looking at funding models practiced in other countries and adapting them to Finas.

RM50 million was allocated to Finas last year, and RM36 million this year. – June 25, 2018.