Press Release: Corruption Perceptions Index 2024
Corruption Perceptions Index 2024
THE Association of Administrative and Diplomatic Officers Alumni is very disappointed with Malaysia’s ranking in the 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index. Our score is 50 over 100, the same as last year, and only marginally above the global average score of 43 over 100. Of the 180 countries involved in the survey, we are ranked 57, the same as last year.
This is not surprising given the seemingly increasing incidence of corruption among public servants. Hardly a day goes by without reports on corruption appearing in newspapers, confirming the perception some have that corruption is systemic in Malaysia.
In January, The Star reported that “Corrupt enforcement officers have been raking in close to RM200,000 each month from vape smugglers at the KL International Airport Free Commercial Zone (“Big money for dirty Customs men”, Jan 24; online at bit.ly/star_badvape). It is disappointing that while the government is trying to balance its budget and reduce its public debt, which currently stands at over RM1.5 trillion, we have such large leakages in revenue collection. And this is just one case of many.
Government programmes to inculcate good values in the public service over the last few decades seem not to have had the desired results.
While enforcement by the Malaysian Anti-corruption Commission needs to be enhanced, efforts by all ministries and agencies to stop corrupt practices have to be stepped up without any compromise. In fact, incidents of corruption and the quantum involved seem to have been increasing geometrically.
The association feels that the government must adopt a no-nonsense approach to corruption in the public sector. The fear factor is not there to prevent officers and staff from being involved in corruption. Research suggests that enforcement will be more successful if the penalty is heavy and the probability of being caught is high – and this includes the successful prosecution of such cases.
While some have suggested structural reforms, the association would like to suggest that we go back to basics and focus on programmes and policies that are already in place to combat corruption. What seems to be lacking is proper implementation. These include:
> Annual asset declaration: Officers and staff, especially those in services prone to corruption, must make their annual declaration, and their senior officers must go through these declarations to check for veracity and accuracy.
The Bureau of Asset Inspection in the Public Sector in Thailand and the Central Bureau of Investigation in India are entrusted with this responsibility. Use of artificial intelligence and big data analysis will be helpful in this.
> Ensure integrity: Heads of enforcement departments and supervisors at different levels must ensure integrity among officers in the workplace.
One cannot help but wonder how some officers and staff can work with syndicates under the very eyes of their supervisors and senior officers. Either seniors close one eye to the goings-on in the office or they are part of the game themselves. They must be held responsible and accountable and be made to face the music.
Supervising officers must be up and about and moving to see what is going on around them. They must also pay attention to news coming through the grapevine and undertake follow-up actions.
> Act against those who
corrupt, offer bribes: Action must be taken against those doing the corrupting too.
We support the action taken in the case of the Customs Department where, apart from the collection of the unpaid taxes, the warehouses of the importer were raided for further checks. It must be done to ensure that every cent of the unpaid taxes is collected, apart from imposing other legal penalties associated with the giving of bribes.
> Stronger action: More drastic actions should be taken against officers and staff involved in corruption.
While we support the programme to transfer officers at regular intervals, action must also be taken against those suspected of being involved in corruption before they are transferred out. Demotion and no possibility of promotion for a very long time must be imposed.
The penalties imposed on those convicted must be revised upward. Additional penalties, such as the confiscation of all assets of those convicted of corruption, as well as the assets of their relatives if they were obtained through corruption, would surely discourage corruption.
The action taken against corruption must create fear and shame among officers and staff involved in corruption. The fact that some charged with corruption have been able to get off scot-free, for whatever reasons, has not helped in creating the fear and shame factors.
-TAN SRI ABDUL HALIM ALI President Association of Administrative and Diplomatic Officers Alumni (Persatuan Alumni Pegawai Tadbir dan Diplomatik) Read the full letter at Thestar.com.my.
