DAP national chairperson Lim Kit Siang today called on Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to give priority to reforming the Anti Corruption Agency (ACA) by making it a fully independent watchdog.

Lim, in a statement, suggested that the ACA be removed from the jurisdiction of the Prime Minister's Department and that it should be made answerable to an all-party parliamentary standing committee on corruption led by an opposition MP.

He said that by making ACA fully independent, Malaysia would fulfil its obligations since it will join some 100 nations tomorrow in signing United Nations Convention Against Corruption in Merida, Mexico.

Lim was referring to Abdullah's decision to meet the ACA, following the verbal joust between its enforcement director Nordin Ismail and Entrepreneur Development Minister Nazri Abdul Aziz in recent days.

The spat between Nazri and Nordin began when the minister spoke out against ACA's delay in recording a statement from him over a complaint that the Commercial Vehicles Licensing Board (CVLB), had issued 6,000 taxi permits to one individual.

"How can the prime minister intervene in this matter without undermining the independence, autonomy and integrity of ACA?" asked Lim.

Nazri had demanded Nordin's removal and replacement with someone "neutral and of high calibre".

However, Lim described this as an attempt to undermine the ACA, for - if a minister could publicly pressure for the removal of the "No 3 man in the hierarchy" - then the agency could not claim to be independent and autonomous.

In any case, Malaysia's ranking in the Transparency International annual Corruption Perception Index - which declined from 23rd placing in 1995 to 37th this year - reflects the lack of independence by the ACA, Lim said.

'Reveal names'

In a related development, DAP secretary-general and Kota Melaka MP Kerk Kim Hock said the public is entitled to know why ACA has been "diplomatic" to ministers instead of getting arrest warrants issued for those who refuse to provide statements.

Nordin had been quoted by Mingguan Malaysia on Dec 7 as saying that the ACA used "too much diplomacy" and allowed certain parties to reply without any urgency to queries.

"Why has ACA chosen to practise leniency and diplomacy, especially when the witnesses are ministers?" asked Kerk.

He said Nordin should investigate the number of ACA cases delayed by "diplomacy" and also reveal names of unco-operative ministers, if the agency wants to maintain its integrity and accountability.

Kerk reiterated Lim's call for Abdullah to make ACA a truly independent body that is answerable only to Parliament.

'We're the boss'

Malaysian Taxi/Limousine and Hired Car Drivers and Operators Association (Perkema) president Yusoff Lahir had lodged the report against Nazri in August, as the CVLB falls under his ministry's jurisdiction.

In the Mingguan Malaysia report, Nordin was also quoted as saying the ACA would depart from its diplomatic approach in dealing with unco-operative parties and that it may even direct the police to issue arrest warrants for anyone, including ministers, who have delayed investigations.

An angry Nazri said at a press conference yesterday that Nordin was not the right person to conduct the investigation because he had taken a public stand on the issue and had further resorted to threatening ministers instead of helping their ministries to curb corruption.

"A sane man would know it is not wise to threaten us. I want to remind him for the last time that he is a government servant and in this structure, ministers are his superiors and he is answerable to us." Nazri said.

Nazri stressed that he has been "very co-operative" with the ACA since he has already made an appointment to meet with the agency on Thursday, and that Nordin's statement was uncalled for.