Fighting graft, a national menace

Getting the right people for the job

The passing of the bills to set up the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) aimed at ridding any misconception of the integrity of the two important institutions in the country was truly a feather in the cap of the Barisan Nasional Government as described by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

These bills, together with the proposed the Witness Protection Bill are all tools in the fight against corruption that has been promised by the Prime Minister. Abdullah must be commended for his personal involvement in successfully pushing through these bills which had met with some resistance from some lawmakers within his own party.

The Opposition however has declared that these bills are not adequate in the fight against graft as they fall short of their expectations to give total autonomy to the respective agencies. It claims as these commissions are still very much under the jurisdiction of the ruling party, they can never be totally independent. The onus is now on the government to demonstrate its seriousness in tackling corruption in the weeks and months ahead and prove the Opposition and other critics wrong. More importantly it has to act seriously to correct the negative perception of the judiciary and the anti corruption agency in the minds of the people.

It is very distressing that corruption seems to be rampant at all levels of our society and is threatening to become an accepted national culture. It is encouraging to see that the government has recognized the importance curbing corruption and is taking moving rightly in that direction but there much more to done than just enacting new laws. Will these laws by themselves prevent corruption that has become deeply rooted? Will they give the police, ACA,AG and judiciary the much needed independence to carry out their functions without fear or favor?

While these new laws are necessary and important in the fight against graft, it is equally important to ensure the human factors in this fight are also in place. Laws are only as good as those who are tasked to implement them. It is of utmost importance to get the right people to head the various commissions that are being proposed, people who are not only capable but of high integrity and fully committed to eradicate corruption. They must be politically non-partisan and act decisively and aggressively against anyone who is corrupt regardless of the status and political ideology. Selection of members of the commissions must be purely on merits and transcend racial and political divide.

The police and the anti-corruption agency must be free to investigate without fear or favor and the AG to prosecute likewise regardless of who the alleged perpetrators of this vice may be. Informers who come forward to expose corrupt practices must be protected at all costs and not punished for doing so especially if their information is found to be not true. Finally the judiciary must be fully independent and free from political pressure to mete out judgments in accordance with the laws and nothing else.

The government has triumphed in getting the bills in the fight against graft. It must now actively go forth with the formation of various commissions, selecting the right people for the tough but important job to free the nation from the crutches of graft. Unless it can form commissions that are highly credible and independent it cannot gain the confidence of the rakyat in its genuine intentions to fight this national menace that transcends all social,racial and political divide.

Dr.Chris Anthony