Malaysia: Over 2,600 civil servants arrested for corruption

Kula Lumpur (VNA) – A total of 2,607 Malaysian civil servants were arrested for corrupt practices from 2015 to October this year, Deputy Chief Commissioner of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Samshun Baharin Mohd Jamil told Bernama.

Of the total, 1,884 individuals were in the enforcement group, followed by the management and professional groups that totaled 658 people, he said, adding the top management group recorded 65 individuals.

These individuals, he said, will hinder the smooth development of the country, and tarnish the credibility of civil servants.

"Because of that, efforts to address and ensure the country, especially the civil service, is free of corruption, are shared responsibility and not placed on the shoulders of the MACC alone," he told Bernama in an exclusive interview.

Shamshun Baharin said in conjunction with the International Anti-Corruption Day (December 9), the MACC will focus on local government authorities (PBT) with the theme “PBT Against Bribery”.

He said that local authorities are one of the focus in the National Anti-Corruption Plan (NACP) and the commission is prepared to work together to assist the local authorities in dealing with corruption and abuse of power, as well as other malpractices, to transform them into into an organisation with high integrity and is corruption-free. 

He also suggested the local authorities to develop their own Organisational Anti-Corruption Plan (OACP) to combat corruption comprehensively,  thus showing the commitment of all their employees in the fight against corruption.

He said the Taiping Municipal Council (MPT) was among the first of the 149 local authorities in Malaysia to develop the plan.

This reflects the commitment and support of MPT staff in the fight against corruption, and further inspired the MACC to continue to fight corruption and power abuse, he added./.