Anwar: Govt serious about eradicating graft but process takes time

To allay public scepticism over the government’s resolve to eradicate graft, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the legal system takes time and stressed he would not interfere with the process.

“Some ask if corruption is so bad in the country, why not the government punish them immediately.

“But we must understand that the legal process takes time and the court must be independent.

“And the government will not interfere in the judiciary and enforcement agencies work,” he said in a live speech today.

The Tambun MP added that he has given ample space to the police and MACC to enhance their efforts to curb corruption and leakages.

“We must also enhance the powers of the National Audit Department to improve the public delivery system,” he said.

Corruption a ‘cancer’

Calling corruption a “cancer”, the prime minister said it was a “disease” that would weaken the nation’s economy and lower the people’s confidence and morale.

As such, he has taken several measures to address the problem - one being getting rid of the direct tender process.

“In my first year, I put an end to that in our procurement process and implemented the open tender system.”

Addressing naysayers, Anwar stressed one should not underestimate the damage caused by corruption as it could affect every layer of society.

“For example, when we started the open tender system, we managed to save up to RM2 billion of taxpayers’ money.

“In fact, we even managed to tackle a smuggling syndicate which was perpetrated by a handful of civil servants - which resulted in us losing RM2 billion in losses since 2017.

“The Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry had also launched Ops Tiris to tackle diesel smuggling. We also took on the cooking oil, chicken, and egg cartels to bring down the cost of living.

“Look at the numbers. If we consolidate them, the funds can be used to help the people and improve our infrastructure,” he stated.

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