'Curbing corruption must start from within,' GRS rep tells Warisan

Summary

• The fight against corruption must start with personal responsibility, not blaming others, says Telupid assemblyperson Jonnybone J Kurum in the Sabah state legislative assembly.

• He notes that corruption is often a matter of perception unless proven in court.

• He stresses that if Sabah had been free of corruption in the past, it would already be a developed state.

A backbencher debating Sabah governor Musa Aman’s policy speech said all parties must accept that the effort to curb corruption in the state should begin with oneself instead of pointing fingers at others.

Sinar Harian quoted Telupid assemblyperson Jonnybone J Kurum as saying that Sabah could have progressed long ago if every individual had taken personal responsibility to reject corrupt practices.

“When it comes to corruption, I don’t want to dwell on it too much because it’s a broad issue and often becomes a matter of perception,” said Jonnybone (above) in the state legislative assembly.

He reportedly argued that corruption can only be proven to have occurred when a case is brought to court and a judgment is made.

“Otherwise, it remains just a perception or a topic of conversation,” he said.

“If you say you are free from corruption, I think you should ask yourself. And if you claim that the current or previous government has never been involved in corruption - I find that hard to believe too,” he added.

According to Sinar Harian, the lawmaker from the ruling GRS coalition said this after allowing a brief interjection by Warisan’s Merotai assemblyperson Sarifuddin Hata who asked if unity should go hand-in-hand with integrity to develop Sabah.

Jonnybone stressed that any genuine attempt to prevent corruption must begin with self-awareness and personal action.

“We cannot see what’s in others, but through ourselves, we can become an example to others.

“If Sabah had been free of corruption in the past, we would already be a developed state. But if we accept the reality that corruption can be curbed, it must begin with ourselves – not by pointing at others,” he said.

Prior to the start of the 16th Sabah state assembly sitting, several Warisan elected representatives urged the GRS government to clear the air on the mining licence corruption scandal that implicated Chief Minister Hajiji Noor, eight assemblypersons, and state assembly speaker Kadzim Yahya.

The current Sabah state assembly sitting ending May 17 will be the last session before its dissolution to make way for the state election, which must be called this year.

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