Are We Sick to the Stomach?

Malaysia suffered losses close to RM1 trillion over the last 25 years due to corruption as well as leakages in the country's management. Emir Research President and Chief Executive Officer said the total represented almost four per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) since 1997. Data over the last 25 years showed that on average two to four per cent of the money that was lost from the country's GDP was due to corruption.

Does corruption make you sick to the stomach? You may only throw-up once the bacteria of corruption is well-entrenched, and you are personally impacted.

A research paper published in the Asia-Pacific Journal on Public Administration and Policy by David Seth Jones (July 2022) suggests that the perceived degree of corruption in Malaysia remains rampant because of the ineffective implementation of anti-corruption measures. The culture of money politics based on cronyism between political operators and business leaders have left our grandiose anti-corruption slogans ineffective.

https://moneycompass.com.my

This, together with political interference to frustrate enforcement, especially against prominent personalities, and the clearly limited impact of such preventive measures, have made Malaysia’s fight against graft impotent. The research concludes that with our political and business culture, and the style of governance practised, the ‘political will’ to battle large scale corruption in Malaysia does not exist. Another TI study suggests 61% of companies in Malaysia do not have adequate procedures to combat corruption.

Malaysia is now ranked 62 out of 180 in the latest global corruption perception index, when just a few years ago, in 2019, we were ranked 51. Perhaps, we can borrow from other countries how to change things.

Uruguay, once an epicentre for corruption, now ranks 18 out of 180 countries in the latest global corruption perception index, and is the least corrupt in South America. This country is a rare modern phenomenon, where their society has succeeded in curbing corruption. They have successfully pushed a virtuous cycle of institutional change toward better governance. Progressive action on the part of Uruguay’s citizens and their non-deferential behaviour with the ‘elites’, when it came to public policies, were essential in transforming the country from one of the worst governed and corrupt nations, to its current position.

In 1985, civilian rule was re-established in this country (Uruguay), and with that came the creation of political parties that were formed from old alliances. But social and civil society groups made huge efforts to build coalitions with others who shared similar aspirations.

For instance, the urban sector, which was badly hit by economic crises, started channelling their demands through a new coalition called Frente Amplio (Broad Front). This partnership of social and civil society groups became a real political option for the citizens against the traditional ‘elites’ in power.

Fresh demands for fair access to public resources, accountability, and better-quality public services changed things. Eventually, successive Uruguayan general elections saw only those politicians who delivered on and were credibly committed to their announced reforms were actually elected. And, this started changing the incentives of ‘elites’ to act in certain ways, and it made it extremely difficult for cronyism to prevail.

The people of Uruguay have shown us the way. Ordinary citizens can influence the national landscape by changing the narrative. We are the only ones who can ensure that we have a safe, stable and fair country.

We must also be engaged in social and civil organisations and get involved by direct participation and by actively joining public hearings and deliberations. Each of these expressions of collective action complements each other. So, the Uruguay example shows us that if we stick together and demand change collectively, using various modes of engagement, eventually the elites will succumb. 

Beyond the above, we need the following:

(i) Corruption Eradication and Recovery Commission – this is either a revamped MACC or a separate entity placed under a Bipartisan Oversight Committee of our Parliament. We need more than the “kleptocrats” in jail. There must be a culture-change and a recovery of moneys stolen from the Rakyat. (We may not recover all the moneys but strenuous efforts to recover the same must be done by an independent party);

(ii) Special Court on Corrupt Practices – this is to speed-up our corrupt cases which otherwise will be abused frivolously with endless delays through the court process; and

(iii) Office of Budget Responsibility (“OBR”) modelled on U.K.’s OBR, we need an independent think-tank that evaluates Government’s fiscal measures, especially the Budget. Otherwise, the Government’s fiscal policy and management are controlled largely by the executive branch with little oversight.

Now with the impending GE15, we have an opportunity to re-set the course for our nation. Then with proper antibiotics the bacteria of corruption could be removed.

References:

Malaysia loses RM1 trillion within 25 years due to corruption, Diana Aziz, Sinar Daily, 22 September 2022

Sick to the stomach? What are you doing about corruption? Shankar R. Santhiram, FMT, 18 August 2022