PM Anwar says new, wider GLC audits to focus on governance, not witch hunts

PUTRAJAYA, Feb 6 — As the government embarks on the second phase of its audit of state-owned enterprises, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today assured that the new powers are not intended to single out individuals or enable witch hunts.

He emphasised that the goal of the audits is to ensure state firms return to their mandates without overlaps and avoid financing practices that breach procedures or result in audit mistakes.

“I’d like to give my assurance today that this initiative is not aimed at singling out or casting suspicion. Those who are performing, continue to do so,” Anwar, who is also finance minister, said in his speech at the launch of Phase 2 of the GLC audit here.

“It’s also not meant to harp on petty matters. Sometimes I get reports from the Auditor General, Datuk Wan Suraya Wan Mohd Radzi, and she says if it’s about small technical audit matters, let it go if they give assurance it would not be repeated,” he added.

An estimated 2,000 for government-linked companies (GLCs) will undergo audits this year as part of the government’s broader efforts to curb power abuses and improve governance.

This will mark the first time the National Audit Department deploys its innovative e-SelfAudit system, which uses artificial intelligence to conduct audits of these state companies.

The auditor-general now holds the authority to audit the accounts of 1,856 entities, including government-linked companies (GLCs), following the enactment of the Audit (Accounts of Other Bodies) (Amendment) Order, which took effect on November 1 after receiving royal assent.

Previously, only 925 entities meeting criteria outlined in the Audit Act were subject to audit by the NAD.

Parliament passed amendments to the Audit Act in July in a move that widened the auditor-general’s reach to audit state firms.