KUALA LUMPUR: About 80% of the proposed Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara) Bill 2026, to be tabled in Parliament before the end of the year, focuses on corporate governance aimed at strengthening the institution's structure and management, says Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki.
In a Facebook post Wednesday (Aug 12), the Mara chairman said that the move was intended to prevent further cases of abuse of power, governance weaknesses, misappropriation, irregularities, leakages and waste, as well as risks that could cause significant harm to the institution responsible for protecting the interests of Malays and bumiputras.
Asyraf Wajdi said a key provision in the Bill, which has been approved in principle by Cabinet, involves reducing the powers of the Mara chairman to chairing the Board or Council and deciding on policy matters, compared with those currently provided under the Mara Act 1966.
"The Bill also provides for a separation of powers between the Board and Mara management, introduces 'fit and proper' criteria for Board members and limits their terms of service.
"The Bill will also tighten financial governance and procurement practices to ensure they meet national and international standards," he said.
Asyraf Wajdi said the draft Bill would also establish several mandatory Board committees, including the Mara Audit, Investment, Finance and Governance, and Risk committees.
"The Bill will also establish a Syariah Committee for the first time to ensure all Mara operations adhere to Syariah principles," he said, adding that the draft Bill includes several other important provisions on good governance that were not explicitly covered under the Mara Act 1966.
He said the new Bill was the culmination of governance reforms carried out since his appointment as Mara chairman on March 10, 2023, after he set up a special task force headed by former Bank Negara Malaysia governor Tan Sri Muhammad Ibrahim.
According to Asyraf Wajdi, the measures included strengthening financial discipline across Mara, carrying out forensic audits of its subsidiaries, centralising internal audit functions for Mara and Mara Corp, and restructuring the procurement division.
"Measures also included establishing a reporting system and introducing monthly financial performance reports for management to the Mara Council, in line with international standards," he said.
On June 14, Asyraf Wajdi said the amendments to the Mara Act 1966 would ensure the new legislation was more relevant and better equipped to strengthen the agency's role in advancing the Bumiputera development agenda. - Bernama
