Don't underestimate corruption, even small dept can leak RM2b - PM

 

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the issue of corruption should not be underestimated, citing the loss of nearly RM2 billion caused by Customs officials involved in smuggling.

“People who underestimate the issue of corruption forget that in the special team of a small department, it can still cause a loss of almost RM2 billion to the country,” he said.

He was delivering his monthly address to the Prime Minister’s Department this morning.

Anwar was commenting on a revelation by the MACC last Friday that a smuggling syndicate involving members of the Customs Department at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Cargo terminal had caused RM2 billion in losses over the past three years.

The losses would be even higher if leakages of diesel and cooking oil were also taken into account, said the prime minister, lamenting that tens of billions of ringgit could otherwise be saved.

However, he divulged that enforcement bodies such as the MACC have assured him that senior officers in the government are keeping away from abuse of power and corruption.

[More to follow] - Mkini