MACC chief concerned over bribery, abuse of power among Penang civil servants

Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Azam Baki expressed concern today about civil servants in Penang accepting bribes and making false claims, in addition to reports of abuse of power. 

He said based on its statistics, MACC had received a total of 919 complaints on these offences from 2019 until now.

"Many offences were committed but the crime of corruption is the favourite, which normally involves accepting bribes and abuse of power.

"We received 312 reports on accepting bribes and 147 on the abuse of power in Penang," he said on a corruption awareness programme with Penang RTM’s Mutiara FM radio.

"This trend is worrying as it involves the abuse of power such as using their (civil servants) positions to award job contracts to family members or individuals who have blood relations," he added. 

He said making false claims for work done was also common in the state. 
 
"For example, an individual who has supposedly done a job makes a false claim for it as if he was the one who did the work. This happens a lot and it's very damaging.

"These cases are increasing by the day, so I urge all the department heads to monitor their officers who are given the authority to make decisions," he said.

Azam also said that civil servants were MACC's first target group for monitoring and investigation, as they are the administrative pulse of a state or country.

"Therefore, I have instructed my officers to look into the corruption issue among civil servants in Penang and other states," he added.