“It’s not fair that we have so many people suffering while the corrupt live beyond their means,” he said in an interview with FMT, adding that any assets purchased with ill-gotten gains must be liquidated and the funds used for the good of the people.
Akhbar also noted that discussions on corruption often focuses on public officials, when it is actually a problem that also afflicts the private sector as well as political parties.
He said the PriceWaterhouseCoopers’ Global Economic Survey for 2016 showed that corruption in private firms in Malaysia had increased from 19 per cent in 2013 to 30 per cent in 2016.
He also pointed to Transparency’s Malaysian Corruption Barometer 2014 survey, which found that political parties were the most corrupt, followed by the police, and by other public servants.
“Corruption is a cancer for any country and society,” he said. “KPMG’s 2013 Fraud, Bribery and Corruption survey showed that 90 per cent of respondents felt bribery and corruption were a major problem for businesses in Malaysia.”
According to Akhbar, the perception that corruption is a major problem in Malaysia reduces the country’s attractiveness to investors, resulting in reduced opportunities for the people.
If the proceeds from the liquidation of seized assets went back to the public, he said, people would have the incentive to become informers.
He noted that the MACC Act protects informers.
“If someone has offered or asked you for a bribe, contact the MACC for advice,” said Akhbar, who served in the Anti-Corruption Agency, MACC’s predecessor, for 18 years.
He praised MACC for its recent string of busts and urged it to maintain the momentum.
Earlier this month, MACC arrested three high-ranking government officials on suspicion of graft, misuse of power and money laundering. The arrests were made in Kuala Lumpur, Malacca and Kelantan respectively.
These were followed by the arrest of a managing director and chairman of a government-linked company , for allegedly being involved in a multi-million-ringgit bribery case.