Make Malaysia second only to paradise

 

I was inspired by a recent comment by MACC director Mohamad Tarmize Abdul Manaf on the need to instil in Malaysians integrity and abhorrence towards corruption from a young age through education.

Indeed, ethics is the core value of all religions. A blessed country is one in which all its people commit themselves to ethics and ethical values. When practiced to their fullest extent, ethics can eradicate poverty, making the country second only to paradise itself.

One of the greatest services a government can do for humanity and as an explicit devotion to the Almighty is to practice ethics and encourage and inspire the general masses to be ethical.

Without ethics and ethical values, no country can progress. Instead, it would be home to a shameless society filled with kleptocrats.

Malaysia, unfortunately, has for a long time been stuck in such a shameful position.

The auditor-general’s report tabled in Parliament recently has, like numerous reports in the past, once again raised the suggestion that this country is susceptible to financial scandals.

I wonder if anyone has documented the extent of losses suffered by the country through corruption and leakages. It would not surprise me if the amount stolen over the past few decades has run into trillions of ringgit, much of which was lost to kleptocrats and their supporters.

Ethical breaches which give rise to unjust enrichment to individuals at the expense of society is defined as corruption and denounced by all major religions. It is repeatedly condemned in numerous verses of the Quran, which I have captured in a number of judgments relating to Islamic banking, including Malayan Banking v Ya’kub Oje (2007), and other writings.

Indeed, it would be challenging for an ethical person or organisation to exist in a country where the corruption index is high. This is because they can expect all unethical persons to conspire to directly or indirectly oppose and fix them at every opportunity.

That is why in all civilised countries, ethics is key to good governance.

In Malaysia, all constitutional functionaries from the three branches of government and their agencies, are obliged to be ethical in the exercise of their functions.

In my view, under our unique Federal Constitution, the Conference of Rulers, led by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, has been installed as guardian of the nation’s ethics.

That is why, I was happy to read that Suhakam has recognised this by petitioning for the Malay Rulers’ intervention to block what it believes are “regressive” and “cruel” amendments proposed to our citizenship laws.

Another dispute that should be referred to the Conference of Rulers is the one playing out in Parliament presently.

Under Article 49A(3) of the constitution, the speaker of the Dewan Rakyat is appointed the referee to determine whether the six Bersatu MPs supporting the unity government should vacate their seats under the 

anti-party hopping

 law.

While disgruntled party representatives and members of the public cannot turn to the court with their grievances about his decision, they must surely be able to turn to the king, who appointed the speaker to his position.

It is a pity that the Malaysian public has not been encouraged to submit to the rulers their grievances arising from alleged breaches of the rule of law or the arbitrary or unethical exercise of constitutional powers.

In my view, when constitutional functionaries representing the elected government fail to take heed of injustices, it is the constitutional right and obligation of the rulers to make things right for the rakyat.

I have full trust that the rulers have the wisdom to do the right thing.

Whistleblowers also play a key role in the creation of an ethical and corrupt-free society.

It is brutally unconstitutional to clamp down on whistleblowers, as practiced here through oppressive actions and legislation.

It therefore falls on the government to give full protection to whistleblowers and reward them for bringing to light unethical practices. A failure to do so will be tantamount to manuring the growth of corrupt and unethical persons.

Judges, legislators, cabinet ministers and members of the public service must be appointed based only on their professional and ethical merit, and not on the “orang kita” premise disguised as appointments made under Article 153 of the constitution.

These appointees must show their patriotism by carrying out their duties in accordance with the constitution.

They must also operate with full intellectual honesty, which is at the heart of ethics. They must at all times act impartially and transparently, and ensure that their personal beliefs and biases do not hinder the proper exercise of their duties.

They must extend full protection to whistleblowers to ensure the eradication of abuse of power, misconduct, corruption, etc.

They must also show moral courage by exposing unethical conduct and dealing with it justly under the law, without fear or favour.

Malaysia has a long way to go to restore the rule of law and ethics in society. Organisations that support this cause should be promoted and adequately funded.

Such steps and investment can only benefit the country and its economy in the long run.

Malaysia can, and must, become that country second only to paradise. - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.