DECEMBER 1 ― Since his appointment as the 10th Prime Minister, Anwar has said and repeated several times that he will not compromise on good governance and anti-corruption issues in his government.
To show that he is committed to it, he also announced that questionable procurements and approval without tender will no longer be tolerated in his administration.
Yes, committing to all procurements must go through tender is a good first step. But it will not address the root cause of corruption in the public sector.
But it is sad to note that the regulation of criminal acts of corruption and law enforcement has proven ineffective because there are still many loopholes that can be exploited by the perpetrators to escape, not be processed legally, to avoid legal entanglement.
Remember that in April 2021, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) arrested and brought to book a project tender cartel where the mastermind exploited the system by establishing over 150 companies to create the grand illusion of multiple tenders.
The awarding of tenders in the public procurement system is not a new phenomenon, but one that is an open secret to feed a system dominated by patronage and power, which has since morphed into an organised activity.
The legacy of patronage and bribery was so entrenched within the system that unless actions are taken consistently and maintained, it will continue to evolve and be present in the public procure system.
Anwar should be well aware that translating word and intention into deed is challenging and efforts to eradicate corruption require extraordinary persistence and consistency requiring extraordinary collective orchestration to firstly reduce and minimize it before we can even think about eradicating it altogether.
For long, the country’s economy is characterised by its signature rent-seeking practices as well as corruption normalisation which has caused multiple problems.
For sure, not everyone will take to the efforts to curb corruption kindly, especially the elite and politically powerful old guards, who, not surprisingly, will take all type of steps and action to undermine whatever efforts Anwar will be taking.
While efforts are being taken to address the endemic corruption, Anwar should also be realistic and aware this approach could potentially result in the civil service becoming careful and afraid out of concerns of criminalisation.
The civil service potentially could even hold off and or delay the paperwork needed to approve public spending on everything from schools, hospitals to garbage trucks, fearful that any expenditure could come under the scanner of MACC.
As Anwar has made reviving the economy his top priority ― and possibly increase public spending to attract much needed investment ― paralysis in the approval on public spending could stand in his way.
To attract back foreign investment is expected to be a struggle and would not achieve immediate results as the country has fallen so far behind our neighbours in the last few years.
The previous 2 administrations failed to take advantage of the US-China trade war which should have been a great opportunity for the country as companies looked to relocate their manufacturing bases to avoid being hit by US tariffs.
None of the companies that announced plans to move operations out of China chose Malaysia.
Much of the corruption in the public sector is due to overlapping regulations and complicated procedures.
As an immediate step, Anwar should give a timeline for the civil service to cut the red tape of the bureaucratic mechanisms and procedures for sectors that are directly related to the interests of the people at large and affect the business ecosystem, especially SMEs.
One of the main reasons SMEs are either not reinvesting or growing is the vast amount of red tape that surrounds businesses in the country, causing significant delays.
Consider introducing a clause in the MACC Act 2009 where the burden lies upon the accused to prove that the gratification that they received was not paid, given or received corruptly.
As local SMEs expands regionally and globally for their businesses, it is also important to be cognisant of the extra-territorial effect of the existing anti-corruption laws. Malaysians who offer bribes or receives bribes overseas should also be liable for punishment under the country’s anti-corruption laws.
* This is the personal opinion of the writer or organisation and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
