Low, you can’t judge a report by its thickness
YoursayPublished: Jun 19, 2014 12:56 AM | Updated: Jun 19, 2014 3:30 AM
YOURSAY ‘Emphasis on volume as oppose to quality misses the whole point.’
Top guns take media heat over audit report
Tholu: Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Paul Low, don't gloat on exceeding the norm of accountability in the public sector, especially in comparison to Singapore.
You actually ought to have put your head down when you said that Singapore auditor-general’s report is only about 70 pages. Further, Singapore does not need to hold similar briefings since the media would hardly have any questions on corruption by the government departments there.
Malaysia auditor-general's report is many times longer because he has to detail the corruption and abuse of power involved in the management of the public sector’s finances.
The Singapore auditor-general's report is short because it is just a book of accounts of its corruption- and power abuse-free financial transactions of its government departments. He merely acts as a bookkeeper maintaining a clean ledger.
Our auditor-general, on the other hand, plays a dual role of an auditor and the role of a researcher investigating corruption and has to write long detailed reports on the corruption and abuse of power involved.
Hplooi: I am a consultant who writes technical report (and make a living out of it).
A good report is not measured by its thickness neither can thickness measure the performance it purports to deal with (it may be full of irrelevant information - which is usually the case in very thick report). So Low is really being disingenuous.
Ramesh Rajaratnam: I'm a retired auditor with 23 years experience. I can tell you that the "thicker" an audit report is, the more problems discovered.
I'm shocked that Low was actually at one time a respected purveyor of transparency.
Ferdtan: I agree that it’s “one small step in the right direction” when top civil servants were forced to face media over Auditor-General's Report 2013.
It should be a yearly affair and the meetings with the press should be open to all, including the alternative media. The meet should last for at least a week with proper scheduling; a few government departments taking turn each day to answer all questions.
It is time for these top civil servants to be accountable for their and subordinates’ actions. Don’t leave it to the ministers to answer hard questions - they are what they are, wily politicians, and you don’t often get honest answers out of them.
With this method of putting the top civil servants in direct line of fire, it will automatically deter them from any hanky-panky or dereliction of duties, committed either by their subordinates or under instructions from top political leaders.
It is a self-check internal control to stamp out corruption and the lackadaisical altitude in carrying out their duties.
Myop101: Low, your emphasis on volume as oppose to quality misses the whole point.
1) Assuming internal auditors in both countries (Malaysia and Singapore) practice same standards of audit review, naturally those departments and ministries that strictly adhere to standards and procedures will receive very few (if any) negative highlights.
2) It is the also the norm for auditors to be precise and concise. They are not suppose to beat around the bush.
3) Bear in mind that our country is larger (contains 14 states and territories) as well as a bloated cabinet. Addressing each minister or its respective director-general alone in Malaysia is sufficient to warrant more pages than its Singaporean counterpart.
Anak Perak: Low, please do not insult the intelligence of the rakyat. Anyone on the street would be able to tell you why the auditor-general's report in Singapore is only 70 pages.
Why not you ask why Singapore can build a better airport at lower cost than Malaysia or why SIA can be so successful when MAS is at the verge of bankruptcy?
Ericlcc: With so many billions wasted and guilty parties identified, it amazes everyone that there is no prosecution and jail time for the errant officers.
Everything is dispensed with by the respective departmental disciplinary committees with a slap on the wrist and a report to chief secretary that action is already taken.
Really, the scale of the losses is mind boggling, yet we seem to have a penchant to repeat the wastage again and again with no serious punitive action. No wonder civil servants are not afraid anymore.
Just one corrupt misadventure and they are financially well taken care of for the rest of their lives. And to add salt to the wound, they can still be eligible for gratuity and pension payments.
Apache: Low, with the country having significantly more corruption cases and wastage of public funds, why don't you instruct auditor-general to print their annual report in font size 1 to reduce the number of pages to below 70?
Negarawan: The auditor-general's report is a damning testimony to Low's failure and ineffectiveness. In fact the level of corruption has increased unabated during his tenure.
The shameless, unprofessional, and uncalled for act of booting out opposition MPs and members of civil societies is because he cannot defend the indefensible.
Low is merely a puppet in PM Najib Razak's cabinet acting according to Umno's script, to give the false impression to the rakyat that the government is transparent and that corruption is under control.
The Auditor-General's Report shows otherwise. Low is stupid enough to think that the rakyat will believe that by signing an integrity pledge, the government will magically transform.
Casey: Let's be serious. What's reviewed in the Auditor-General's Report are pale in comparison to those daylight robberies and leakages 'legitimised' via 'pirate-isation'.
Cost of highways and IPPs (independent power producers), for example, were inflated by the billions - funded largely by taxpayers' money - and above that, we're made to pay the exorbitant toll rates and ever increasing electricity tariffs.
Azlan Ahmad: As a long retired civil servant, I was shocked and dismayed to find out from the Auditor-General’s Report that the question of transparency and integrity had been raised on Felda management.
Just take the procurement issue or the tendering system that had been questioned in the report. Such incidences were never heard of during the times when Felda's chairmanship was under a civil servant. Things go astray the moment politicians are allowed into the organisation.
This never happened during PM Abdul Razak’s or Hussein Onn’s time. I just hope whoever leads Felda is a person with high integrity and solely committed to the ideals and objectives of Felda.
The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.
Top guns take media heat over audit report
Tholu: Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Paul Low, don't gloat on exceeding the norm of accountability in the public sector, especially in comparison to Singapore.You actually ought to have put your head down when you said that Singapore auditor-general’s report is only about 70 pages. Further, Singapore does not need to hold similar briefings since the media would hardly have any questions on corruption by the government departments there.
Malaysia auditor-general's report is many times longer because he has to detail the corruption and abuse of power involved in the management of the public sector’s finances.
The Singapore auditor-general's report is short because it is just a book of accounts of its corruption- and power abuse-free financial transactions of its government departments. He merely acts as a bookkeeper maintaining a clean ledger.
Our auditor-general, on the other hand, plays a dual role of an auditor and the role of a researcher investigating corruption and has to write long detailed reports on the corruption and abuse of power involved.
Hplooi: I am a consultant who writes technical report (and make a living out of it).
A good report is not measured by its thickness neither can thickness measure the performance it purports to deal with (it may be full of irrelevant information - which is usually the case in very thick report). So Low is really being disingenuous.
Ramesh Rajaratnam: I'm a retired auditor with 23 years experience. I can tell you that the "thicker" an audit report is, the more problems discovered.
I'm shocked that Low was actually at one time a respected purveyor of transparency.
Ferdtan: I agree that it’s “one small step in the right direction” when top civil servants were forced to face media over Auditor-General's Report 2013.
It should be a yearly affair and the meetings with the press should be open to all, including the alternative media. The meet should last for at least a week with proper scheduling; a few government departments taking turn each day to answer all questions.
It is time for these top civil servants to be accountable for their and subordinates’ actions. Don’t leave it to the ministers to answer hard questions - they are what they are, wily politicians, and you don’t often get honest answers out of them.
With this method of putting the top civil servants in direct line of fire, it will automatically deter them from any hanky-panky or dereliction of duties, committed either by their subordinates or under instructions from top political leaders.
It is a self-check internal control to stamp out corruption and the lackadaisical altitude in carrying out their duties.
Myop101: Low, your emphasis on volume as oppose to quality misses the whole point.
1) Assuming internal auditors in both countries (Malaysia and Singapore) practice same standards of audit review, naturally those departments and ministries that strictly adhere to standards and procedures will receive very few (if any) negative highlights.
2) It is the also the norm for auditors to be precise and concise. They are not suppose to beat around the bush.
3) Bear in mind that our country is larger (contains 14 states and territories) as well as a bloated cabinet. Addressing each minister or its respective director-general alone in Malaysia is sufficient to warrant more pages than its Singaporean counterpart.
Anak Perak: Low, please do not insult the intelligence of the rakyat. Anyone on the street would be able to tell you why the auditor-general's report in Singapore is only 70 pages.
Why not you ask why Singapore can build a better airport at lower cost than Malaysia or why SIA can be so successful when MAS is at the verge of bankruptcy?
Ericlcc: With so many billions wasted and guilty parties identified, it amazes everyone that there is no prosecution and jail time for the errant officers.
Everything is dispensed with by the respective departmental disciplinary committees with a slap on the wrist and a report to chief secretary that action is already taken.
Really, the scale of the losses is mind boggling, yet we seem to have a penchant to repeat the wastage again and again with no serious punitive action. No wonder civil servants are not afraid anymore.
Just one corrupt misadventure and they are financially well taken care of for the rest of their lives. And to add salt to the wound, they can still be eligible for gratuity and pension payments.
Apache: Low, with the country having significantly more corruption cases and wastage of public funds, why don't you instruct auditor-general to print their annual report in font size 1 to reduce the number of pages to below 70?
Negarawan: The auditor-general's report is a damning testimony to Low's failure and ineffectiveness. In fact the level of corruption has increased unabated during his tenure.
The shameless, unprofessional, and uncalled for act of booting out opposition MPs and members of civil societies is because he cannot defend the indefensible.
Low is merely a puppet in PM Najib Razak's cabinet acting according to Umno's script, to give the false impression to the rakyat that the government is transparent and that corruption is under control.
The Auditor-General's Report shows otherwise. Low is stupid enough to think that the rakyat will believe that by signing an integrity pledge, the government will magically transform.
Casey: Let's be serious. What's reviewed in the Auditor-General's Report are pale in comparison to those daylight robberies and leakages 'legitimised' via 'pirate-isation'.
Cost of highways and IPPs (independent power producers), for example, were inflated by the billions - funded largely by taxpayers' money - and above that, we're made to pay the exorbitant toll rates and ever increasing electricity tariffs.
Azlan Ahmad: As a long retired civil servant, I was shocked and dismayed to find out from the Auditor-General’s Report that the question of transparency and integrity had been raised on Felda management.
Just take the procurement issue or the tendering system that had been questioned in the report. Such incidences were never heard of during the times when Felda's chairmanship was under a civil servant. Things go astray the moment politicians are allowed into the organisation.
This never happened during PM Abdul Razak’s or Hussein Onn’s time. I just hope whoever leads Felda is a person with high integrity and solely committed to the ideals and objectives of Felda.
The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.
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