QUESTIONS still abound over Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Chief Commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki’s alleged business activities after the decorated officer botched a golden opportunity to come clean to the public at a press conference on Wednesday.
His stance that he has nothing to explain and that he answers only to the Anti-Corruption Advisory Board (LPPR) is both arrogant and flawed.
Oversight over the chief commissioner also comes from among others, the chief secretary to the government, the parliamentary committee on corruption, the prime minister and ultimately – even primarily – the Malaysian people.
His letter of demand sent to Lalitha Kunaratnam, the independent researcher and journalist who exposed the shareholdings through publicly available documents, borders on intimidation and is an affront to the Whistleblower Protection Policy that ironically the MACC is supposed to promote and protect.
Now that police and the Securities Commission are investigating the fact that Azam allowed his brother to use the former’s trading account to deal in shares – which could run afoul of the Securities Industry (Central Depositories) Act 1991(Sicda) – it is only right that he steps aside from leading the MACC.
With a higher standard of integrity placed on MACC above all other agencies, it is about time that the government heeds the calls from the various parties for a royal commission of inquiry to get to the bottom of this crisis.
The LPPR and its chairman Tan Sri Abu Zahar Ujang have not succeeded in regaining the public trust as the LPPR’s absolution of Azam was not done transparently.
With that, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob must end his silence and spearhead the efforts to repair the image of the MACC by mooting for an independent body to investigate Azam.
After all, it was only in November that he said integrity must be the foundation for making the 12th Malaysia Plan a success.
The prime minister can take courage and inspiration from his own words: “Integrity refers not just to corruption alone. Integrity refers to the comprehensive and effective practice of virtuous values.
“Only a society that practices noble values can create a society that is free of corruption, and free from acts that violate ethics.” – The Vibes, January 8, 2022
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