Help alert us of graft in government, public urged
KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has urged members of the public to play a part in helping the government combat corruption.
He said the public should not be afraid to report cases of corruption as no action would be taken against them.
“We need the support of the people. The people must understand that corruption is not good for them. Therefore, they must play their part in eradicating corruption.
“If there is any evidence of corruption in the government, we hope the people will alert us by becoming whistleblowers,” he said in his keynote address at the 2018 Anti-Corruption Summit here yesterday.
He said public interest and cooperation in combating corruption was important as the government depended on the public for information.
Dr Mahathir said at the same time, the public also had to be aware that corruption was a crime and they must avoid corrupt acts, like trying to bribe officials to get approvals for something they wanted.
“This is our hope, that the whole country will be dedicated to fighting corruption.
“This means we must have high standards in our value system. We must reject corruption as a crime which benefits no one. We hope that with the public showing interest in fighting corruption, and with the government officers and machinery cleaned up, it will result in a reduction in corruption, or better still, the elimination of it altogether,” he said.
Dr Mahathir said since Pakatan Harapan came to power following its victory in the May 9 General Election, his government had promised to fight corruption and put in place rules to combat the malaise.
He said in upholding the separation of powers among the legislature, executive and judiciary, and in eradicating corruption, the government would ensure that the three branches kept one another in check.
Dr Mahathir said the people must reject the attitude of depending on government aid that was promoted by the previous government.
“Unfortunately, the previous government’s policy had affected the people in the sense that they had become dependent on the government, depended on free money to be given, (and) not working to earn any income for themselves.
“We have tried to change this government-dependence mentality.
“But, of course, it is not easy. They have been receiving money and now we have to stop it. But if (it is) stopped suddenly they will get into trouble.
“So we have to slowly eliminate this form of bribing,” he said.
Themed “Good Governance And Integrity For Sustainable Business Growth”, the one-day event was organised by Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M).
It attracted some 500 participants and a list of local and international speakers, including TI-M president Datuk Akhbar Satar, Immigration Department director-general Datuk Seri Mustafar Ali, former PetroSaudi employee Xavier Andre Justo and United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Southeast Asia and Pacific anti-corruption adviser Francesco Checchi.