The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) must be given powers to prosecute if the government is serious in tackling graft, said DAP’s Rasah MP Anthony Loke.

He said there is no point for the government to rebrand the MACC and give it a new image when the commission still cannot bring corruption cases to court.

azlan Citing a report tabled by the parliamentary Special Committee on Corruption, Loke said the proposal to give MACC prosecuting powers has support from both sides of the House, leaving little reason for the government not to consider it.

“The report from this special committee, chaired by Mohd Radzi Sheikh Ahmad (BN-Kangar), pointed out that the bulk of public complaints were related to the MACC’s lack of prosecuting powers,” he said at a press conference in the parliament lobby today.

NONE “The committee recommended to amend the constitution to allow the MACC to prosecute corruption cases. This comes not only from Pakatan Rakyat... this committee also includes BN members.”

Loke ( left ), who is also DAP Youth chief, added that the government should also allow parliament to debate the MACC’s annual report, saying it is disappointing that previous efforts to debate the report had been shot down.

“If the government is serious about tackling corruption, then I ask that after the budget debate is over, parliament gives at least two days to debate the MACC’s annual report,” he said.

No prosecution powers for MACC: Nazri