THE allegations levelled against the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki reveals problems within the civil service and how they conduct their affairs.
“If we had enacted laws to compel civil servants and elected leaders to declare their sources of income and assets, this problem could have been averted,” HELP University Faculty of Business, Economics and Accounting and Institute Crime and Criminology senior lecturer R Paneir Selvam told FocusM.
Last week, Azam said at a press conference that he saw no issue in him holding over one million ringgit in shares in public listed companies, despite Public Officers (Conduct and Discipline) Regulations 1993, which disallows civil servants having shares worth more than RM100,000.
He had claimed that his younger brother Nasir Baki had used his trading account to purchase some shares.
However, it is to note that trading using another person’s account was in violation of the Section 25 of the Securities Industry (Central Depositories) Act 1991 (SICDA), where every securities account opened with a central depository must be in the name of the beneficial owner of the deposited securities or in the name of an authorised nominee.
If found guilty, Azam could face a fine not exceeding RM2 mil, imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or, both.
Touching on the matter, Paneir Selvam questioned how Azam could have escaped scrutiny by his superiors and the Public Service Department (PSD) since 2015, as all high-ranking civil servants are required to declare their holdings.
As the shares were said to have been bought between 2015 and 2016, the academic said that it was obvious that his then superiors and PSD would have had information about it.
“And he was promoted twice before becoming the chief commissioner in 2020. I’m sure PSD would have vetted him before promoting him. Plus, the Special Branch (SB) would have scrutinised his credentials too. So, what went wrong?” he queried.
With that said, Paneir Selvam also questioned why Azam is being targeted now and whether there was a political agenda attached to it.
He reminded the public that Azam was instrumental in pushing forward high-profile corruption cases, especially involving the infamous “court cluster”.
“Don’t get me wrong. I’m not trying to defend Azam but the question is, why now? We must remember that those being hauled in court right now used to run the Government back then.
“To me, it looks like as long as you serve your political masters, all is good but if you go against us, we will take you down,” he opined.
Re-educate civil servants
In a nutshell, Paneir Selvam opined such problems could have been averted if civil servants remember who their employers are; the public.
“We need to re-educate civil servants that their loyalty must lie with the country and Malaysians, not political leaders. This is the problem Pakatan Harapan faced in their 22 months in power.
“Many civil servants lacked understanding on who they were serving as they were still loyal to Barisan Nasional (BN). Even former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad acknowledged the problem.
“And politicians should also stop manipulating public servants to serve their own agenda,” Paneir Selvam stressed.
As for Azam, he stated that if the latter had conducted himself within PSD’s protocols, he should not fear being probed by the authorities.
“But the problem with our leaders is that they refuse to acknowledge there is a problem and drag their feet on investigation. We love to sweep things under the carpet,” Paneir Selvam remarked. – Jan 9, 2022.
