Majority of the rakyat are pleased that a minister is finally taking swift and decisive action against alleged corrupt government officials.

Last Thursday, Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Tiong King Sing went to the rescue of a tourist from the PRC, who had been detained by immigration officials at KLIA.

Tiong, who is also the MP for Bintulu, has alleged that this is not his first intervention.

However, the action of the minister has received mixed reviews.

Tiong went to KLIA at 3 a.m. and was accompanied by MACC officers. He claimed to have received a phone call from the Consulate-General of Malaysia in Guangzhou about the detention of a Chinese national by immigration officials.

Both the Ministers for Internal Affairs (Home Minister) and Transport are investigating Tiong’s allegations which will soon be presented to the cabinet.

Tiong’s actions are also supported by Mohd Khalid Harun, President of the Malaysian Association of Travel Agencies (MATA). He was full of praise for Tiong’s efforts to eradicate corruption at the country’s entry points.

Malaysians have long known about corrupt immigration officials either from their first-hand experience or from the harrowing tales related by friends or work colleagues who suffered at any of the country’s entry points or immigration offices throughout the nation.

Those who bothered to officially express their dissatisfaction with the treatment they received would find their complaints swept under the carpet.

At the same time, many who suffered do not bother lodging complaints for fear of retaliation.

The people who were furious by Tiong’s actions include Umno-Baru Youth chief Dr. Muhamad Akmal Saleh who demanded that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim take action against Tiong for allegedly abusing his position by breaching security protocols at KLIA.

Akmal said that no individuals should be above the law.

However, Akmal appears to have overlooked the fact that his former party leader, the convicted felon Najib Abdul Razak acted above the law and his role in the 1MDB scandal encouraged acts of corruption in his administration. This includes corrupt civil servants and politicians.

Meanwhile, Cuepacs president Adnan Mat was also unhappy that Tiong had interfered with the duties of civil servants.  

He said that this matter, if proven true as alleged by an online news portal, meant that Tiong had violated national security protocols and interfered with the duties of civil servants.

Adnan said the intrusive behavior of the minister had violated safety procedures and the department’s standard operating procedures.

He also said the minister had acted inappropriately and should have given full trust to the authorities whilst they discharged their duties.

Most Malaysians agree that previous efforts to stamp out corruption were half-hearted ones. The ikan bilis get caught but the sharks were allowed to escape scot-free.

Corruption has become our way of life.

For four decades, there was no political will to deal with corrupt civil servants. Unless the government is serious about eradicating it, corruption is here to stay.

Unless the government is serious about eradicating it, corruption is here to stay.

On one hand, we have to fund and pay for our bloated and inefficient civil service, but at the same time, we are powerless to act against corrupt civil servants who demand and accept massive bribes.

Is it any wonder the nation is in debt to the tune of RM1.4 trillion?

Allegations about corrupt government officials including politicians are numerous. Corruption affects people from all walks of life.

One person who was walking in downtown Kuala Lumpur came across a construction site and witnessed two policemen on their motorbikes asking for the site supervisor. The policemen then allegedly demanded a payment of RM50 for each worker on site.

The site supervisor revealed that it was common practice for policemen to treat migrant workers as their automated teller machines (ATMs).

It was easy money. It was either pay up or be threatened with some issue over the workers’ documentation.

Ordinary households are not spared either. Some people allege that a maid’s application or renewal should only take a few days and not a few months. In most cases, a sweetener must be paid to move the papers from the bottom of the file to the top.

Many Malaysians who have been stopped by traffic policemen or JPJ enforcers who told them they had jumped the red light or violated another traffic rule, are familiar with the words: “Macam mana mahu settle? (How shall we settle this?)

These victims often pay up because they do not want the hassle of wasting more time over false charges. All they want is to quickly leave.

Meanwhile, a determined Tiong said that he was prepared to face the cabinet and answer questions related to his intervention.

He should not be surprised to learn that his actions are fully supported by most Malaysians.

We want firm, decisive action to tackle corrupt officials. We’re fed up with empty promises.

The question Malaysians should pose to both the Umno-Baru Youth leader and Cuepacs president is: “Which is the most corrupt government department?”

Actually, a better question would be: Which government department is not corrupt?

Source:

1. Free Malaysia Today: MACC to quiz Tiong tomorrow over KLIA corrupt practices

(Mariam Mokhtar is a Freelance Writer.)