KUALA LUMPUR – The country has scored a D rating or 45% on Transparency International Malaysia’s (TI-M) Government Defence Integrity Index (GDI) 2020.
The score indicates Malaysia has weak institutional resilience to corruption.
In the research carried out by TI-Defence & Security, among the key observations on Malaysia’s low score are:
- Poor legislative oversight over budget
- Low competitive bidding for procurement
- No independent ombudsman to address complaints
- Lack of data transparency
“We urge the government to seriously look at the high risks of corruption in the defence sector and take measures to mitigate the situation,” said TI-M president Muhammad Mohan.
He also urged the government to make a full disclosure to the public, on the littoral combat ship and the McDonnell MD503G helicopter deliveries as these projects have long been delayed and they involve taxpayers’ money.
In a statement by TI-M, it found that the defence sector has long been held as the most opaque area of government activity, owing to its sensitivity and proximity to the regime.
“Demonstrating transparency and having accountability in these two cases would show that the government is serious about good governance in the defence sector.
“Budget transparency, for instance, has long been restricted. The published defence budget provides only a general outline rather than a comprehensive breakdown of expenditure across functions.”
The GDI assesses countries with respect to their defence institutions on how efficient the controls are in managing the risk of corruption across five main risk areas of defence: policy-making and political affairs, finances, personnel management, military operations and procurement.
Globally, New Zealand came out top with a score of 85%, while the worst country is Sudan with a score of 5%. – The Vibes, November 16, 2021
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