PENANG Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the state welcomes the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) investigation into corruption among civil servants in the state. 

Chow said this is in line with the CAT principles of good governance practised by the state since 2008 – competency, accountability and transparency. 

Speaking to Penang RTM’s Mutiara FM radio yesterday (Sept 29), MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki had expressed concern about civil servants in Penang accepting bribes and making false claims in addition to reports of abuse of power. 

According to Azam, anti-graft agency had received a total of 919 complaints on these offences from 2019 until now. 

In a statement today on this matter, Chow said no one is above the law and civil servants – whether from Federal, State or local authorities and agencies – found to be involved in accepting bribes, abuse of power and making false claims must be investigated and charged soonest possible. 

“At the same time, the Penang state government wants MACC to be transparent in revealing the number of cases brought to the courts and the number of civil servants found guilty,” he added. 

“We demand transparency on the part of MACC as we do not want the image of Penang civil servants and the State government to be tarnished only by account of the number of complaints received since 2019.” 

Chow also said that the Penang state government ready to work with MACC to ensure that officers involved in corrupt practices be dealt with severely. 

Azam, who appeared in the radio station’s corruption awareness programme, also said that MACC received 312 reports on accepting bribes and 147 on the abuse of power in Penang. 

He said this trend is worrying as it involves the abuse of power such as using their (civil servants’) positions to award job contracts to family members or individuals who have blood relations.  

He said making false claims for work done was also common in the state.  

In response to this, former DAP chairperson Lim Kit Siang earlier challenged the MACC head honcho to give facts and figures to justify his statement, saying Azam should not make “irresponsible statements against any state without facts and figures”. – Sept 30, 2022 

https://focusmalaysia.my/penang-cm-we-welcome-macc-probe-into-corrupt-civil-servants/