Corruption has no place in any culture

LATELY, we have been seeing many photographs and a lot of video footage of handcuffed men and women in orange T-shirts bearing the words “Lokap SPRM”.

These are people who have been arrested by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in connection with its investigations. Lokap SPRM is the Bahasa Malaysia term for the MACC lock-up.

Some of these men and women have been or will be charged in court for offences such as offering or soliciting bribes and abuse of power. If they are guilty, they will be punished.


But what if the wrongdoing is partly to do with how the private sector operates?

If businessmen believe that greasing someone’s palm is an acceptable way to get ahead of the competition, and if a company’s culture tolerates or even encourages corrupt practices, why should the employees be the only ones held accountable when the authorities enforce the law?

It is not easy, however, to prove that a company has criminal intent.

This will matter less if there are provisions in the law that deem companies responsible if employees commit certain offences in the course of their work.

This concept of corporate liability for the crimes of employees has been introduced in countries such as the United States, Britain and Australia.

Malaysia has long talked about introducing such provisions.

In July 2013, for example, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Paul Low said the Government wanted to introduce a “corporate liability law”.

The idea is to hold boards of directors and CEOs of companies responsible for bribes given by their employees unless it is proven that there are measures in place within the organisation to prevent corruption.

Since then, Low and senior MACC officers have several times brought up this matter.

It appears that the plan is to either amend the MACC Act or to come up with a fresh piece of legislation.

At one point, Low said the Bill would be tabled by March this year and that the new provisions would come into effect in 2018.

However, the draft legislation has yet to reach Parliament.

The latest update was from MACC deputy chief commissioner (operations) Datuk Azam Baki, who was quoted in a Sin Chew Daily report this week saying that the Cabinet had approved the Bill for the Corporate Liability Act and that it would be tabled in October.

It is understandable if the business community is less than enthusiastic about this.

There is always the fear that an employer will be unfairly blamed for an employee’s lack of integrity.

There is also the well-worn argument that complying with additional rules and regulations will increase costs amid already challenging conditions.

It is likely, however, that the new provisions are applicable only if the companies cannot demonstrate that they have done all they can to prevent the offences, or if they are negligent in addressing the risks of such offences being committed.

We will have to wait and see.

Meanwhile, businesses should examine their practices and procedures.

It is definitely in the best interest of a company to ensure that its employees understand well that corruption is not part of its corporate culture.

For that matter, corruption should not be part of any culture.

- Sunday Star Says

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Making the corrupt fear whistleblowers, not the other way !

WE ARE so used to seeing the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on the frontlines in the war against corruption that we often forget the importance of whistleblowers. 

Ten ways activists can encourage and support whistleblowers >>

Graft-busters cannot be expected to single- handedly detect cases of corruption and abuse of  power because this requires surveillance capabilities that are impossibly expensive and intrusive. Instead, they typically rely on people channelling quality information on alleged offences so that the investigations can start.

Federal Land Development Authority chairman Tan Sri Shahrir Abdul Samad reminded us about this when he warned Felda employees, including its top management, that there were whistleblowers within the organisation who would report wrongdoing. - (Check: Shahrir backs Felda staff who expose wrongdoings)

Commenting on the MACC’s raid on Monday on Felda Investment Corporation Sdn Bhd over the purchase of a London hotel, Shahrir welcomed the probe as a “good development” and said he believed that the new leads received by the commission came from whistleblowers.

“I want to assure those who expose the corrupt practices within Felda that they will be protected,” Shahrir added.

That is an important message. People are reluctant to volunteer information on corrupt practices mainly because they believe there would be reprisals if it was made known to others that they had blown the whistle.

Employees worry about being treated poorly by bosses and colleagues. Businessmen risk losing customers and deals. And sometimes, the stakes are so high that a whistleblower may even have reason to fear for his life.

People need to be convinced that there is a better alternative to saying nothing about corrupt practices. First and foremost, a whistleblower wants to be sure that if he so chooses, his identity will be kept confidential.

This is why the Whistleblower Protection Act 2010 matters a lot.

It is described as an Act “to combat corruption and other wrong­doings”, showing that it has a central role in the fight against corruption. And yet, according to the MACC, few people have asked for protection under the Act.

In 2015, the commission received about 6,300 reports and complaints, but only 16 people sought (and were given) protection under the Act. In fact, between 2011 and 2015, 65 people were given such protection.

In its Annual Report 2015, the MACC said more individuals were writing in to give information on corrupt practices. In addition, the commission received fewer anonymous letters in 2015 than in the year before. The MACC said this showed rising public confidence in supplying information to the commission.

The commission also attributed the trend to its improved transparency in handling information from complainants.

But what about the low number of whistleblowers seeking protection under the Whistleblower Protection Act? Can it be that few people are aware that the Act can shield them from the fallout of whistleblowing?

The authorities should look into this. There has to be more awareness of how the Act works and this should then be used to encourage more people to come forward with information that can help the graft-busters.

The corrupt should be the ones fearing the whistleblowers and not the other way round.  - The Star


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