Malaysia slips further in corruption rankings
There has been no improvement in the perception of corruption in Malaysia since 2001 despite the many promises by authorities to stamp out graft and bribery.
There has been no improvement in the perception of corruption in Malaysia since 2001 despite the many promises by authorities to stamp out graft and bribery.
At the unveiling of the 2008 Corruption Perception Index, which measures the level of corruption taking place in a country, Malaysia scored 5.1 last year.
The mediocre score is little different from the 4.9 to 5.1 range it has been straddling since 2001.
"This shows that there are a number of countries that have progressed much better than us," said Transparency International (Malaysia) president Ramon Navaratnam.
Navaratnam was referring to Singapore, which topped the list in South East Asia with a score of 9.1. Overall, the island state was placed fourth among 180 countries assessed.
By comparison, Malaysia came out 47th in the overall list, compared to 36th placing it secured in 2001 when the index had surveyed only 91 countries.
However, Malaysia still managed to stay above other regional neighbours such as Thailand (3.5), Vietnam (2.7), Indonesia (2.6), the Philippines (2.3), Cambodia (1.8) and Burma (1.3).
"The high degree of corruption that still exists in these economies could impair business efficiency, obstruct or slow down cross border trade and makes doing business more expensive and riskier," Navaratnam said.
Culture of intolerance needed
He also said that more could be done by Malaysian authorities to curb corruption.
"While fighting corruption in the public sector requires strong political will, this must be followed by a strong and persistent determination to strengthen oversight and accountability,” he said.
"A culture of intolerance for corruption also needs to be instilled in the culture of the civil service. Political leaders must lead by example and walk the talk," Navaratnam added.
The former Transport Ministry official also said while it was commendable that the government had initiated units like Pemudah, a special taskforce to facilitate and make transparent the setting up of businesses in the country, more could still be done.
"The mediocre CPI score for Malaysia should be a sharp reminder to the government that it needs to go beyond rhetoric and pronouncements and show greater commitment to combat corruption,"Navaratnam said.
Apart from institutional and law reforms TI said ways to improve Malaysia's CPI is to make government decisions and transactions more transparent.
"This includes revamping the Official Secrets Act," said Navaratnam.
Government procurement, said Navaratnam, must also be more open to curb corruption.
On money politics, Ramon suggested that representatives standing for election and political parties be more restricted and accountable in the use of money in election.
The Transparency International CPI ranks countries in terms of the degree of corruption perceived to exist among public officials and politicians.
The composite index draws its data from expert and business surveys carried out by a variety of independent institutions.
