In the fourth and final series of the Youth Parliamentary Debathon 2022, jointly organised by Malaysiakini and KiniEvents in collaboration with the Delegations of European Union to Malaysia, Australian High Commission in Malaysia, along with Taylor’s College, 8 youth representatives across the country tried to address on the issues with political donation.

The aim of this discussion is to give the youth an opportunity to speak out, voice their challenges and give their views and suggestions on amendment of political financing law in Malaysia.

The debaters between the ages of 20 and 25 brought concrete arguments to convince the audience before they voted to support or oppose the motion.

In total, there were 1,892 total voters who participated in the Youth Parliamentary Debathon voting system. Based on the 8 proposals submitted by all the youth representatives, Anis Afina’s (from the opposition bench) suggestion on (The Lacuna in Our Current Political Financing Ecosystem is the Weaknesses of the Enforcement Body and Current Legislation) received the highest vote which is 86%.

The 22-year-old student from International Islamic University Malaysia, was awarded the Most Popular Debater title for the final series of the Youth Parliamentary Debathon 2022.

This was followed by Ahmad Akif’s (from the government bench) suggestion on (Mandatory Audit for Every Politicians Annually) which had 77% vote and Aishwarya D. Menon’s (from the government bench) suggestion on (Malaysia Needs a Political Financing Framework That Empowers both Electorates and Financers Alike Against Political Corruption) which had 74%. Aishwarya D. Menon was awarded the Best Debater by the panel judges for this session.

Below are all the 10 proposed suggestions from the youth representatives:

1. Mandatory Audit for Every Politicians Annually

2. Promotes Nepotism Among Political Parties

3. Institutional Reforms for Political Funding Surveillance

4. The Usage of Media And Newspapers for a Political Party is as Important as Political Funding

5. Malaysia Needs a Political Financing Framework That Empowers both Electorates and Financers Alike Against Political Corruption

6. The Lacuna in Our Current Political Financing Ecosystem is the Weaknesses of the Enforcement Body and Current Legislation

7. The Need for Institutional Reform

8. Ban All Forms Foreign Political Donations

All the problem statements and suggestions presented by the fellow debaters will be documented and submitted to the Youth and Sports Department under the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

You may click here to watch the replay of the last episode of the Youth Parliamentary Debathon for 2022.

You can also rewatch again the first series and the second series and the third series of the Youth Parliamentary Debathon 2022. For further information on the Youth Parliamentary Debathon visit this website.