Corruption: A big big problem in Malaysia

Corruption can be defined as an abuse of power for one’s private gains and it can take many forms. From politicians misusing public funds to government officials involve in bribes in exchange for services, corruption can happen anytime, anywhere and behind closed doors.

The cost of corruption exceeds monetary value in that it infringes your rights and the rule of law besides carrying with it grave socio-economic and political impact.

How do Malaysians feel about corruption?

The latest Transparency International’s Global Corruption Barometer for Asia 2020 carried out between July 2019 and June 2020, covering 17 nations and over 20,000 respondents, showed Malaysians’ perception towards corruption in the country.

During the period Malaysia was both under the Pakatan Harapan and Perikatan Nasional governments, 71 per cent of Malaysians think corruption in government is a big problem.

In the past 12 months, 39 per cent of Malaysians think corruption has increased with many citing incidents of bribery, vote buying and sextortion.

Out of all public institutions, the report revealed that Members of Parliament are the most corrupt (36 per cent), followed by the police (30 per cent), government officials (28 per cent), business executives (27 per cent) and even Prime Minister (25 per cent).

Last year, Malaysia ranks 51 out of 180 countries surveyed by the organisation’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) which measures the level of public sector corruption, jumping 10 places as compared to a ranking of 61/180 in 2018.

Tackling corruption

Despite Malaysians viewing corruption as a big problem, more than 60 per cent believe that the government and anti-corruption agency is doing a good job at tackling corruption in the country.

The perception may have been attributed to the “the aggressive actions taken by the enforcement authorities like the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) as well as policies put in place by the Global Infrastructure Anti-Corruption Centre and the National Anti-Corruption Plan (NACP) by the Prime Minister’s Office,” Transparency International Malaysia’s president Dr Muhammad Mohan said in the statement accompanying the report yesterday.

He added that many Malaysians (67 per cent) do support the government’s main corruption fighting agency, MACC, higher than the average in Asia at 63 per cent.

Majority of Malaysians (68 per cent) also feel that they can make a difference and take part in fighting against corruption.

“It is clear that the rakyat believe we can all fight corruption. However, there appears to be a slight dip in expectations when it comes to politicians and their officials of late, which may have to do with all the political instability, party jumping, allegations of money politics, and corruption scandals involving political figures,” Muhammad said.

Muhammad added that in order for Malaysians to continue supporting the government, it needs to put its act together.

“The NACP has to be implemented and enforced without delays, amendments, watering down or U-turns.”

Political Financing Act must also be tabled in Parliament in order to limit and control money politics, party hopping and election-related bribery.

“Strong political will is needed if we aspire to make Malaysia known for her integrity and not corruption,” he added.