“Azam Baki must be hallucinating to snub call to park MACC under Parliament”
CHIEF graft buster Tan Sri Azam Baki must be “hallucinating” if he thinks that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) should not be placed under Parliament, says Prof P. Ramasamy.
The vocal DAP lawmaker was responding to Azam’s remarks to the media on Thursday (Sept 29), where the latter said the anti-corruption enforcement agency was already an independent institution and need not be placed under Parliament for transparency.
Azam added that doing so would likely lead the agency to be forced to follow policies set by politicians – a hypocritical call to make when the agency is being urged to be free from political pressure at the same time.
In a statement last night (Sept 30), Ramasamy noted that politicians in Parliament are not just politicians but the people’s representatives of their respective constituencies.
“If anybody has the right to check the MACC, then politicians functioning as representatives of the people have the right,” the Perai assemblyman said, adding that this is why Parliament is the “most suitable place” to park the MACC under.
Prof P. Ramasamy (Photo credit: The Star)
Ramasamy also poured cold water on Azam’s argument that the MACC would lose its independence if it came under Parliament, saying this was “nothing but pure nonsense”.
“If the MACC had been placed under Parliament, Azam might not have escaped the dragnet for dabbling in the share market,” he noted, referring to the shareholding controversy that Azam was embroiled in earlier this year.
But because the MACC was “beholden” to the executive, Ramasamy continued, Azam was “spared the scrutiny” and “perhaps even his post” as MACC chief commissioner.
“In other countries, Azam might have been forced to resign because the shares he held did not commensurate with his income as a civil servant,” Ramasamy added.
“At the moment, because the MACC is only responsible to the executive, it has been spared the scrutiny of the legislative purview.”
Openly admitted
After an investigative journalist ran an expose on the matter, Azam in January openly admitted that his brother had used his share trading account – with his permission – to purchase shares in two public-listed companies in 2015.
Even though the Securities Commission (SC) eventually said they were not able to establish that there was a breach of regulation over the case, this did nothing to quell intense public anger over the case and a protest in the city centre which called for Azam’s head.
Azam has also refused to appear before the Parliamentary Special Select Committee (PSSC) on Agencies Under the Prime Minister’s Department to answer for the scandal – more than eight months on.
Meanwhile, Ramasamy, who is also Penang deputy chief minister II, further criticised Azam over his “mischief” in singling out Penang for corruption among civil servants.
Ramasamy also poured cold water on Azam’s argument that the MACC would lose its independence if it came under Parliament, saying this was “nothing but pure nonsense”.
“If the MACC had been placed under Parliament, Azam might not have escaped the dragnet for dabbling in the share market,” he noted, referring to the shareholding controversy that Azam was embroiled in earlier this year.
But because the MACC was “beholden” to the executive, Ramasamy continued, Azam was “spared the scrutiny” and “perhaps even his post” as MACC chief commissioner.
“In other countries, Azam might have been forced to resign because the shares he held did not commensurate with his income as a civil servant,” Ramasamy added.
“At the moment, because the MACC is only responsible to the executive, it has been spared the scrutiny of the legislative purview.”
Openly admitted
After an investigative journalist ran an expose on the matter, Azam in January openly admitted that his brother had used his share trading account – with his permission – to purchase shares in two public-listed companies in 2015.
Even though the Securities Commission (SC) eventually said they were not able to establish that there was a breach of regulation over the case, this did nothing to quell intense public anger over the case and a protest in the city centre which called for Azam’s head.
Azam has also refused to appear before the Parliamentary Special Select Committee (PSSC) on Agencies Under the Prime Minister’s Department to answer for the scandal – more than eight months on.
Meanwhile, Ramasamy, who is also Penang deputy chief minister II, further criticised Azam over his “mischief” in singling out Penang for corruption among civil servants.
(Photo credit: Bernama)
Azam said, also on Thursday, that the anti-graft agency has received almost 1,000 complaints since 2019 on civil servants in Penang allegedly accepting bribes, abusing their power and making false claims.
Ramasamy asked why Azam did not draw any comparison with other states, where (according to Ramasamy) corruption was “endemic due to Barisan Nasional (BN) and UMNO”.
It is not that there is no corruption at all in Penang, Ramasamy clarified, but Azam’s statement implies that every other state and federal territory is corruption-free.
He added that talking about corruption in Penang but not in the other states was a “cheap ploy” by Azam to “smear the excellent governance” of the state under Pakatan Harapan.
“Maybe by engaging in this selective endeavour, he thinks that he is assisting UMNO in laying the groundwork for the coming 15th General Elections (GE15),” Ramasamy speculated. “Whoever said that Azam was apolitical?”
Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow has since welcomed the MACC’s probe into the matter and pledged cooperation with the authority. – Oct 1, 2022
Azam said, also on Thursday, that the anti-graft agency has received almost 1,000 complaints since 2019 on civil servants in Penang allegedly accepting bribes, abusing their power and making false claims.
Ramasamy asked why Azam did not draw any comparison with other states, where (according to Ramasamy) corruption was “endemic due to Barisan Nasional (BN) and UMNO”.
It is not that there is no corruption at all in Penang, Ramasamy clarified, but Azam’s statement implies that every other state and federal territory is corruption-free.
He added that talking about corruption in Penang but not in the other states was a “cheap ploy” by Azam to “smear the excellent governance” of the state under Pakatan Harapan.
“Maybe by engaging in this selective endeavour, he thinks that he is assisting UMNO in laying the groundwork for the coming 15th General Elections (GE15),” Ramasamy speculated. “Whoever said that Azam was apolitical?”
Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow has since welcomed the MACC’s probe into the matter and pledged cooperation with the authority. – Oct 1, 2022
There is no need to talk so much about this Azam fella who is really a dog wagging its tail whenever his master calls.
ReplyDeleteIf the MACC comes under parliament, he knows his freedom to do as he pleases will be curtailed.
Frankly, the sub committees within the MACC are also useless. I am not sure if the members of the committees are paid some kind like directors' fees. If so, save those money by disbanding those committees.
I am not too clear about whether such committees are also present in the Singapore context. But even if yes, at least their CPIB (Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau) has a sterling reputation and is ranked highly in the yearly Corruption Index.
On what Azam said about corruption in Penang, an apolitical MACC Commissioner would be duty bound to submit a status report by state yearly so that each MB or governor will undertake the necessary corrective action just like what the Auditor-General does yearly.
But as I stated erlier, Penang is seen as a "Chinese" state. Azam is just continuing the narrative by Hadi that corruption is caused by the nons especially the Chinese and Indians.