Letter to Editor
WE live in a time of a proliferation of information. Information – whether verified or not –is easily shared on a multitude of social media platforms like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, Telegram, all with a click of a finger.
As facts, pseudo facts and downright lies are all jumbled up, it is not easy to differentiate what is real and what is fake for the less astute.
Those who consider themselves educated and politically astute are not necessarily immune to behind-the-scene manipulations which can easily hijack the narrative by feeding into the unchecked prejudices of the reader.
An award-winning documentary on Netfliz, The Great Hack, comes to mind. Based on real life events, the film explore how a data company, Cambridge Analytica, came to symbolise the dark side of social media in the wake of the 2016 US presidential election which saw Donald Trump thumping over Hillary Clinton by leveraging the “Clinton, the liar” narrative.
I have been examining the chronology of events that culminated in the present crisis besetting the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) head honcho whereby civil society and political parties across the divide coalesce, all calling for the resignation of Tan Sri Azam Baki with greater and greater vigour.
Even without due legal process and proof, you can almost hear them chanting, “Guilty! Guilty! Guilty!”
Social media trial
From what I see, it is a combination of seriously delayed responses, unconvincing explanations – plus the ineptness of the MACC chairman of the advisory monitoring body – in a tragic comedy of errors which led to the perception that the chief commissioner is guilty even before any real evidence is shown.
A PR (public relations) nightmare indeed but the fact remains:
- It is not a crime to delay explanation.
- It is not a crime for a civil servant to own shares.
- It is not a crime for his family members to be engaged in business and buying shares all over the place.
The case in question happened in 2015, 2016 and Azam Baki as the facts stand, has returned all the shares to his brother who in the process made a loss.
There is no evidence of insider trading that enabled Azam Baki or his brother to make a handsome profit from the purchase in those two years.
He had also declared his shares to his department chief then as he explained. As to the question of the legality of his brother using his share trading account, the Securities Commission (SC) is investigating it now.
At present, as the facts stands, what Azam Baki has committed is the grave crime of being tried and found guilty by the (social) media and by public perception.
Hence, the questions, an astute observer should ask are:
- Why only now when the issue of Azam Baki’s share occurred some six years ago?
- Who is really behind the ubiquitous Twitterings – presenting itself as a whistleblower – which is clearly the job of well-paid cybertroopers to bring down certain individuals in the Government?
The Tweets have even managed to garner the attention of an “investigative journalist” who is now facing a RM10 mil defamation suit for merely “retweeting” in a more structured, formal essay – and gained access into an online media outfit.
Conspiracy theory
Could the timing be well set to explode just months before the 15th General Elections (15GE) that we know will be intensely fought by major political parties with outcomes likely to go any which way?
This year is also the year when grand high profile corruption cases that garnered worldwide attention will likely see court verdicts.
We also know that the MACC under Azam Baki has been investigating the corruption of politicians across both political divides – the opposition and the ruling party.
This civil servant made no political friends. Only enemies aplenty.
2022 is the most critical year for the balance of power shift and what better way to create distrust of one of the most important government institutions?
Who gains from the removal of Azam Baki? Who gains from the creation of a trust deficit in the present government?
You can see the two forces colluding into a single unified systematic attack to remove the chief commissioner and to cast doubts and suspicion of the anti-corruption institution.
Civil society, self-styled journalists and activists have their roles to play. They have a right to question the lack of transparency and accountability of government officers and agencies, but they need to be careful that they are not playing into the hands of those who have their own agendas unless they also have agendas of their own. – Jan 16, 2022
R. Rajaratnam
Sungai Petani, Kedah.
The author is a reader of Focus Malaysia.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
