Answer for Oral Question PL238

QUESTION

Yang Berhormat Pengiran Haji Isa bin Pengiran Haji Aliuddin

YANG BERHORMAT PENGIRAN HAJI ISA BIN PENGIRAN HAJI ALIUDDIN asked the YANG BERHORMAT MENTERI KEWANGAN II to state the actions and strategies of the Ministry of Finance in coordinating all national revenue collections that require serious attention, particularly the issue of leakage and revenue arrears from the relevant ministries, to ensure that revenue collection can be resolved in an orderly and targeted manner?

ANSWER

Yang Berhormat Menteri Kewangan II

Government revenue arrears are a matter of serious concern to the Ministry of Finance as they affect the Government’s cash flow and reduce the actual amount of revenue available to finance Government expenditure and the delivery of Government services to the people and residents.

To address this issue, the Ministry of Finance, through the Treasury Department, has continuously implemented several measures to strengthen the management of Government revenue collection. These include regularly monitoring the performance of revenue arrears collection by obtaining status reports from the relevant Ministries and Departments every three (3) months.

This information is subsequently used to identify arrears requiring immediate action and to assess the effectiveness of the collection measures implemented.

In addition, the Treasury Department also holds regular discussions with the relevant Ministries and Departments to identify the causes of arrears, the challenges faced in the collection process, and to formulate more effective follow-up measures to expedite the collection of outstanding revenue.

For cases that cannot be resolved through administrative action, the Ministry of Finance has also referred several cases to the Attorney General’s Chambers for appropriate legal action.

As a measure to prevent the occurrence of Government arrears, the Treasury Department has endeavoured to provide facilities and conveniences for the public to make payments.

These include the provision of the One Common Billing System (OCBS), which enables the public to make payments through several channels such as cards and online payment, while also enabling monitoring to be carried out.

In addition, in strengthening the use of digital payments for Government services, the Ministry of Finance, through the Treasury Department, has also conducted requirement gathering with National Digital Payments Network Sdn Bhd (NDPX) to implement the use of TARUS.

Through the integration of the TARUS system with the Electronic Payment Gateway (EPG) and OCBS systems, e-wallet applications such as TAIB VX, Progresif Ding! and MyDST Wallet will become one of the alternative payment methods, facilitating the public in making online payments using mobile phones.

A more convenient and accessible payment method that can be used at any time is also expected to increase the rate of timely payments, thereby reducing Government revenue arrears.

The implementation of the Utility Smart Metering System (USMS) will improve the efficiency of Government revenue collection, particularly revenue from water and electricity bills. Through the use of smart meters, consumption readings can be recorded more accurately and in real time, thereby enabling bills to be issued more quickly and accurately.

In addition, this system also helps to reduce outstanding bills through the bill arrears collection programme, more effective consumption monitoring, the automatic issuance of payment notices, and by facilitating users in making payments through digital channels. In Shaa Allah, this initiative will reduce revenue leakage and continuously improve the rate of Government utility revenue collection.

The Ministry of Finance is committed to strengthening national revenue collection through digital transformation, robust governance and integrated cooperation to improve collection efficiency, reduce leakage and ensure the country’s fiscal sustainability.