The media has been abuzz with news of various alleged corruption. All such news, which is taking its toll on the nation and its citizens from several vantages, also demands a re-look at the actual state of corruption in this country.

Our honourable prime minister recently said that 85% of alleged corruption was baseless. This poses two serious reflections.

Firstly, why are we taking comfort in the 85% when we should be focusing on the Paretto Principal where the vital few can cause most of the damage. Secondly, it reflects that our 'official' definition of what constitutes corruption is seemingly very narrow.

Corruption as we see it today should not be restricted to merely political and police corruption. In fact it goes beyond the various international benchmarks and subjects of evaluation that we can easily recognise today. It must be viewed from all dimensions from monetary, policies, culture, value systems and ethics.

And corruption taken in such a holistic perspective clearly indicates that the 85:15 percent basis as explained by the leadership does not hold water. Corruption has on the contrary spread onto a wider canvas of our society penetrating the social, moral and ethical dimensions of existence. And therein lies the biggest challenge to all of us if we are committed to secure a future for all our young and those who are yet to be born.

Our corrupt ways is manifested by a host of other actions and inactions be it at work or in our private lives. For example, when the civil service fails to deliver owing to a lack of commitment to the virtues of work ethics, it is corrupt. Or when there is preferential treatment given to service seekers or privileges granted to the who-is-who, it is a form of corrupt practice.

What about teachers all over the country giving minimum productivity in school but going the distance giving tuition or getting involved in multi-level marketing and direct-selling schemes? Are these not a form of disgraceful corruption?

Likewise, it is not rare to see traders cheat at the slightest opportunity be it at shopping centres or at 'pasar malams'. From the approved and licenced mega-sales and demolition sales that is present all year round all over the country to the infamous tiga-ikat-dua-ringgit and satu-longgong sales of poor quality vegetables and fruits popular at pasar malams - all these are underlined by the greed to make a fast buck at the expense of the customer.

Public transport operators who fail to ensure that their vehicles are safe, roadworthy and clean, and taxi drivers who fleece without winking an eye - are these not signs of a corrupt society?

The amount of toxic chemicals and fumes that have been dumped in the stillness of the night or the 'surprised discoveries' of illegal deforestation all these years re-affirms the corrupt nature of entrepreneurs, corporations and the law enforcers.

Look at the way residential and commercial high-rise buildings are constructed. How many times have the purchasers cried out for being short changed.

And take a look at the many cases of exploitation involving our domestic helpers and cheap foreign labour. Fueled by a greed to have more disposable cash for ones own enjoyment and often at the expense of these human slaves we employ, is indeed a corrupt practice.

Or what about the way we litter our environment with plastics and tetrapacks that are already choking our rivers and quietly poisoning our ground water? Are these not a corrupt form of lifestyle?

Indeed it is not an exaggeration that corruption has filtered into every segment of society and at all levels. Money and power to control is no more the sole motivator that is turning our nation into a corrupt society of people. Hence the PM may be wrongly advised into believing that there is a 85% erroneous perception about corruption.

The nation has to come to terms with the station that we are at in terms of corruption. And unless and until the government of the day can provide the right direction and example, we are probably going to sink even further in our corrupt ways.

It is time to pay attention to the moral, ethical and social dimensions if we are serious about tackling corruption otherwise we would be ranked alongside other nations that have sunk too deep into the claws of corrupt practices.