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Lessons not learnt despite repeated audit warnings
Lessons not learnt despite repeated audit warnings

The Sun

time7 hours ago

  • Business
  • The Sun

Lessons not learnt despite repeated audit warnings

PETALING JAYA: Despite the Auditor-General's annual reports repeatedly flagging irregularities and weaknesses in government departments, lessons are rarely learnt and accountability remains weak, said former auditor-general Tan Sri Ambrin Buang (pic). 'I've always believed the report offers valuable insights. But who's actually willing to read and act on them?' he asked. The onus, he said, is on controlling officers such as the secretaries-general and department heads, to take audit findings seriously and initiate reform. 'The auditor-general can highlight the problems, but it's up to ministries and agencies to follow through. Without ownership, the same issues will keep resurfacing.' His comments come in the wake of the latest report, which has once again brought to light a familiar list of financial mismanagement, weak internal controls and procedural breaches. The Auditor-General's Report (Series 2) released on Monday, flagged serious irregularities and weaknesses in projects and programmes involving seven ministries. Five audits involving seven ministries, with an overall cost of RM48.873 billion, were reported. Alliance for a Safe Community chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye said the government must treat the findings with urgency or risk normalising weak accountability. He said repeated red flags reflect not just administrative lapses but also a deeper culture of negligence. 'Delays in project completion, overpayments, failure to follow procedure and procurement without documentation – these aren't minor slip-ups. They signal systemic failures and a lack of integrity among those entrusted with public funds.' Lee said the latest report once again exposed a familiar cycle of financial mismanagement, procurement irregularities and regulatory breaches, often with little consequence. 'We urge the government to act swiftly. If no disciplinary or legal action is taken against those responsible, the cycle will continue. Without consequences, there's no deterrence.' He called for the beefing up of internal audit units, making them independent and capable of real-time monitoring, not just post-event reviews. 'There also needs to be greater transparency in procurement. An online dashboard should be created so the public can track how government funds are being spent.' Lee pushed for periodic integrity audits, particularly for high-risk departments, to detect early signs of misconduct and not just financial irregularities. He also called for parliamentary oversight to be tightened. 'The Public Accounts Committee must have the authority to summon not just department heads, but ministers too. Accountability should not stop at middle management. The public deserves better. Malaysians are paying taxes, yet the people entrusted with those funds behave with carelessness or, worse, dishonesty.' Meanwhile, political analyst Prof Dr Azmi Hassan said the AG report is a vital tool for transparency but not every issue flagged should be treated as a scandal. The Nusantara Academy for Strategic Research fellow noted that many findings in the report stem from operational shortcomings rather than outright mismanagement. 'Some reflect inefficiencies that can be addressed internally without external scrutiny,' he said. Azmi cautioned that while the report helps expose serious breaches, it can also paint an overly grim picture by highlighting issues that are routine administrative challenges. 'For example, when it comes to university research grants, it's hard to directly link funding to immediate commercial returns. It's not something you can measure in simple terms.' He added that ministries and agencies should proactively fix such issues before they appear in audit reports. 'Agencies should not wait for problems to be exposed. They should correct them as part of good governance. When there's clear misuse of funds, that's when enforcement bodies like the MACC must step in.' Azmi also stressed the importance of distinguishing between poor management and operational lag. 'The AG Report should not be seen in black and white – it is more nuanced than that.'

50% cap breached, will quota ordinance hold, guv asks AG
50% cap breached, will quota ordinance hold, guv asks AG

Time of India

time13 hours ago

  • Politics
  • Time of India

50% cap breached, will quota ordinance hold, guv asks AG

Hyderabad: Governor Jishnu Dev Varma Tuesday held detailed consultations with advocate general A Sudarshan Reddy at Raj Bhavan to assess the legislative competence and constitutional validity of the state's recent ordinance that removed the 50% cap on reservations for weaker sections in the upcoming panchayat elections. The governor had sought legal clarity on whether the state was within its powers to enact such an ordinance. In response, the advocate general explained that the Constitution itself grants states the authority to make such provisions. He cited the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution (list II-state list, entry 5), which empowers states to ensure better self-governance in panchayats through Article 243-D(6), and for municipalities through Article 243-T(6). The AG clarified that the ordinance does not specify any reservation percentages for SCs, STs, or BCs. "All we have done is remove the 50% upper limit imposed by the previous BRS govt through section 285-A of the Telangana Panchayat Raj Act, 2018," he said. You Can Also Check: Hyderabad AQI | Weather in Hyderabad | Bank Holidays in Hyderabad | Public Holidays in Hyderabad The section introduced by the previous BRS govt stipulated that total reservations for SCs, STs, and BCs should not exceed 50%, in accordance with the triple test requirement laid down by the Supreme Court. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like No annual fees for life UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo "We removed the upper cap by amending the law," the AG said. "However, the ordinance does not specify any particular quantum of reservation for any category," he added. The AG further pointed out that the Constitution does not prescribe any quantitative limit on reservations in local body elections. "With credible empirical data on social and economic backwardness, states can apportion reservations appropriately. We are only acting on that principle," he explained. The AG informed the governor that the state's recent caste survey found that BCs constitute around 58% of the population. "We have scientific, area-wise data supporting this. A notification specifying BC reservations based on backwardness across regions is under preparation," he said. The AG asserted that the state was fully empowered to bring such an ordinance and is prepared to defend it legally. "This step is part of our broader goal to achieve social justice. We welcome debate and are ready to meet any legal challenge that may arise," he is believed to have told the governor.

AG Campbell proposes new regulations on embattled Roxbury mortgage lender tied to Healey donor
AG Campbell proposes new regulations on embattled Roxbury mortgage lender tied to Healey donor

Boston Globe

timea day ago

  • Business
  • Boston Globe

AG Campbell proposes new regulations on embattled Roxbury mortgage lender tied to Healey donor

Advertisement Under a program the nonprofit calls BlueHub SUN, BlueHub buys properties from banks that are foreclosing on the homeowners, then resells them to the original owners. As part of the deal, the homeowners take on what is known as a shared appreciation mortgage — a relatively rare type of real estate loan that entitles BlueHub to a portion of any increase in the home's value when the homeowner sells or refinances the property. In a statement, BlueHub spokesperson Autumn McLaughlin wrote that BlueHub 'completely support[s] regulations that align with the intent and spirit of the law [Healey signed in 2024].' She said that the nonprofit intends to provide comments on the changes during the 27-day public comment period, after which Campbell's office will finalize the new rules. Advertisement The proposed regulations do not specifically name BlueHub; however, the rules as drafted would require BlueHub to share with homeowners the maximum amount that could be due under the shared appreciation mortgage and disclose that the loan includes a so-called balloon payment, or a one-time payment due to BlueHub at the end of the loan term. The proposed regulations also would bar BlueHub from making false promises to influence someone to sign a shared appreciation mortgage application or steer them away from hiring a lawyer to review the application. Both echo accusations by homeowners who 'I feel like it was the only reasonable move the AG could make,' said Jeffrey Wiesner, a partner at the law firm Wiesner McKinnon LLP who represents the homeowners in that lawsuit. In 2024, homeowners and state officials alike were shocked when the Legislature included a proposal to legally protect BlueHub, one of hundreds of policy riders lawmakers tacked onto a nearly $4 billion economic development bill. The measure was approved as part of a bundle of amendments without debate on the floor or a roll-call vote. Specifically, the language states that lenders utilizing shared appreciation mortgages would not be liable 'for monetary relief, injunctive relief or other equitable relief at common law or by statute' as long as it gives a homeowner 'full disclosure' of any shared appreciation requirement. Homeowners and consumer advocates immediately saw that the measure would benefit BlueHub, which is the only nonprofit entity in the state that offers such a loan. Advertisement In Activists urged Healey to veto the language McLaughlin, the BlueHub spokesperson, told the Globe for this story that 'the legislature understood the value of regaining and retaining homeownership when it passed this law last session, and the fact that we need workable regulations to help families avoid the devastating impacts of foreclosure and eviction.' But long before the law passed in 2024, homeowners had raised concerns about BlueHub's practices. More than a dozen complaints from consumers to the state's Division of Banks dating back to 2015, illustrate the frustration, according to documents obtained by the Globe. One homeowner told regulators in 2016 that the organization was 'a loan shark' and that they had tried to reach out to BlueHub multiple times 'for some mercy.' Another consumer in 2020 wrote to the banking regulator that BlueHub and its affiliates were 'conducting sharecropping practices on their customers.' 'They are taking advantage of low-income communities as well as people of color,' the consumer wrote. 'They present themselves as sheep but are wolves in sheep's clothing.' In a recent interview with the Globe, Boston homeowner Annie McKnight said the 47 percent shared appreciation mortgage BlueHub has on her Hyde Park colonial means that, at 72 years old, she can't afford to downsize or bequeath the house to her children. She said at the time, she was at risk of losing her home and that the BlueHub loan officer who approached her 'was not forthcoming' about the terms. Advertisement 'They said if you don't sign today, we can't do anything for you ... to me, that just says you are stealing my home,' McKnight said of the house she's lived in since 1978. 'You're stealing any kind of investment I might make in this house. You're stealing any opportunity I have to have any kind of legacy or build wealth.' BlueHub officials say their Stabilizing Urban Neighborhoods Initiative, or SUN, program has helped 558 Massachusetts homeowners who were in danger of foreclosure. According to the 2020 lawsuit, dozens of people in Massachusetts who borrowed from BlueHub — which at the time was known as Boston Community Capital — said they discovered belatedly that they had agreed to a shared appreciation mortgage, and that they were misled about what they were signing up for. The borrowers said they had no lawyer at the closing and no one adequately explained the agreement, which included a requirement that they not talk about the terms of the deal, according to the lawsuit. After Healey signed the bill into law, some drew connections between the governor and BlueHub's longtime chief executive, Elyse Cherry, who have Bruce Marks, chief executive of Jamaica Plain-based Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America, which has helped finance the lawsuit against BlueHub, said the signing represented 'the corruption of the Massachusetts governor.' In a Advertisement Shortly after the bill signing, Wiesner and other consumer advocates met with Campbell and her staff to discuss how to protect homeowners despite the legal immunity given to Bluehub. The regulations Campbell's office proposed this week mirror a number of the ideas floated during that discussion, though Wiesner said that the new law raises questions about what could happen if BlueHub violated the new rules. '[The 2024 law] is a huge barrier to enforcing the regulations,' Wiesner said. 'If you can't enforce the regulations, then the company can get away with violating them.' The proposed regulations, however, do say that while shared appreciation mortgage lenders are exempt under the new law, they can still be held liable for 'unfair or deceptive marketing, servicing, underwriting, and collection acts or practices.' This, Andrea Bopp Stark says, is crucial. 'I do feel they really listened to the concerns of consumers,' said Bopp Stark, a senior attorney at the National Consumer Law Center who also met with Campbell in December. 'I think it's a really great start. It's thoughtful and really tries to protect the borrower.' Campbell's proposal will hold Samantha J. Gross can be reached at

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