PUTRAJAYA: THE government has proposed to amend the relevant laws next year to impose heavier penalties on those who offer or give bribes.
It was only appropriate to impose heavier penalties on the givers as well as those who accepted bribes, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
“While we have targeted the receivers, the givers should also be severely punished because corruption can destroy all that we have built in this country,” Najib, who is also finance minister, said when addressing the monthly assembly of the Prime Minister’s Department yesterday.
Najib described corruption as the root cause of many problems, ranging from environmental degradation, citing the illegal farming issues in Cameron Highlands, to illegal activities such as gambling.
He also called for stricter action against those who gave kickbacks, including by private companies.
Political parties, he said, should have regulations and take a common stand to address the issue.
Eliminating bribery was one of the government’s to-do list for next year, he said, adding that the others were resolving issues relating to security threats, national solidarity and creating a high-performance culture.
Najib warned that Malaysia could not shrug off the threat of militancy, including from the Islamic State (IS), especially when some Malaysians, including several low-ranking civil servants, had been influenced by the ideologies.
Action, therefore, must be taken to curtail militancy and any form of extremism, he said. Before the situation got out of hand, the government had decided to strengthen the laws with new ones or amend existing ones, Najib said.
“Militancy, such as the IS, is very dangerous. We have tabled the White Paper on militant threats and, in my speech, I have mentioned that 39 Malaysians were involved with the IS in Syria and Iraq.”
He expressed concern over Malaysians becoming suicide bombers, citing one Malaysian who had killed about 25 Syrians.
“There is a possibility of another Malaysian suicide bomber whom I did not mention in my speech during the tabling of the White Paper because the person used various aliases. This suicide bomber has caused at least 50 fatalities.”
Najib also expressed concern should polarisation take deeper root in society as this could upset the country’s peace and harmony, citing some developed nations.
“We cannot be lenient in our laws when there are still those in society who are irresponsible, immature and fail to respect the different faiths and cultures, which can create tension among the people.
“This is why the government has decided to retain and fortify the Sedition Act 1948. The move is not to hinder democracy or control the opposition. In fact, they (the opposition) are free to strengthen themselves, to show how vibrant democracy is in the country.”
Meanwhile, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission chief commissioner Tan Sri Abu Kassim Mohamed said any amendments to the existing laws could complement the enforcement of the Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009 in curtailing corruption.
Such amendments were in line with the United Nations convention on the prevention of corruption and the stance adopted by Asean countries in a meeting recently.
Abu Kassim said political parties should support the amendments when they are tabled in Parliament.