MACC man tells of ‘corrupt cartel’ in procurement

 

Izani Wan Ishak said the power and position of a person as well as the opportunity and space to commit corruption are among the main causes of corruption.

PETALING JAYA: Procurement officers in government departments have been found to be in cahoots with contractors or suppliers, divulging inside information about projects to the bidding company, leading to cartels that monopolise certain projects, says the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

MACC senior deputy commissioner of investigation, Izani Wan Ishak said that based on previous cases, people in procurement departments would conspire with the contractors or suppliers.

“Through the ‘win-win’ pact, bidders can go through the tender approval process easily using corrupt practices at all levels of the department.

“This cartel is a big problem we face and this has been happening for a long time and will continue to happen,” he said in a seminar entitled “Together to Fight Corruption”.

He said the power and position of a person as well as the opportunity and space to commit corruption are among the main causes of corruption.

He said the public sector recorded the highest number of corruption cases with 1,628 investigation papers opened from 2018 to August this year.

“Of that number, those involved in 255 cases have been sentenced,” he said.

Asked if there was any interference from any party during the investigation, Izani admitted to facing difficulty in terms of cooperation involving influential individuals in giving accurate and true evidence.

“No one at the investigation stage was harassed by any party during the 37 years I supervised cases, but our problem was getting cooperation from individuals in power in revealing the facts,” he said.

Another panellist, Union Network International-Malaysian Liaison Council (UNI-MLC) president Mohamed Shafie BP Mammal suggested that a Corruption Court be established so such cases could be given due attention.

“With this Corruption Court, the trial period will not take long because the people are disgusted with what is happening now. When a case goes on for too long, it is either dropped or the individuals released,” he said without referring to any specific case.- FMT