1MDB scandal caused by greed, says DPM
> Key persons lacked conscience, put personal interests above all else: Wan Azizah
SUBANG JAYA: The 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal occurred mainly because the individuals behind it lacked conscience and were driven by greed, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
Drawing comparisons to other crises in the United States, including the Enron financial scandal and the subprime mortgage crisis, she said these cases also indicated that leadership failure had brought disastrous consequences.
“In all of these failures, there were regulations in place, governance mechanisms and reporting systems.
“Yet, they all failed because the individuals behind the crises stopped listening to their conscience and succumbed to greed,” she said at the Asean Corporate Responsibility and Sustainable Development Summit yesterday.
“We expected our leaders to do good and help us achieve more. Instead, we saw instances where our leaders failed us. Those were leaders who put profit over everything else.
“They allowed their personal interest to override common interests and they used their wealth to buy influence,” she added.
She also cited the Deepwater Horizon oil spill incident in the Gulf of Mexico, claiming that these issues only occurred because those at the top decided to pursue profit without regard to the safety of others.
She said it was also unfortunate that some of those leaders were backed by henchmen who became “willing followers of these bad leaders”.
Wan Azizah added that it was regrettable that some leaders typically do not emphasise leading with conscience in their haste to fulfil their key performance index (KPI).
“They are only concerned about meeting their KPIs, and anything that is not included in their KPIs is seen as irrelevant and of little interest to them,” she said.
On sustainable development goals, Wan Azizah said it requires more than just lip service, and needed a committed leadership.
“It takes a certain mindset to be committed to a long-term cause such as sustainable developments. It requires leaders who lead with their conscience.”