MACC gets UN recognition

KUALA LUMPUR: THE Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has received international recognition from the United Nations as an independent, transparent and professional anti-graft body.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the UN's Office on Drugs and Crime's acknowledgement follows the success of the self-regulatory mechanisms employed by the commission as well as its own commitment to setting a higher bar despite learning from best practices internationally.

The commission, which had elevated itself to an independent commission status, answers annually to a parliamentary special committee on corruption and independent advisory board, a complaints committee and two other consultative panels.

"It is our hope that it will not only continue to strengthen its own capabilities, but also that it may serve as an example for other countries looking to build the institutional capacity to combat corruption," he said at the closing ceremony of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) Train-the-Trainer Workshop for Voluntary Codes of Business Ethics in Medical Device, Biopharmaceutical and Construction Sectors yesterday.

Najib also stressed on the importance of moving towards charting a future free of corruption to cater to a healthy, balanced and sustainable economic growth.

"We want to make corruption part of Malaysia's past, not its future and that means changing organisational as well as business cultures.

"By encouraging a culture of responsibility and ethics, we can make a significant improvement to the future health of our economies."

Malaysia, he added, welcomed Apec's initiative in bringing business ethics into sharp focus, which in turn, helped to cut through the existing mess of fragmented, complex and unclear rules.

The workshop was also conducted to enhance the competitiveness of SMEs especially in the engineering, biopharmaceuticals and medical devices sectors, which already has codified business ethics in place.

Codified business ethics makes it easier for SMEs to make decisions that will lead to sustainable prosperity not only just in one sector, but for the economy as a whole.

"SMEs account for half of our national employment and nearly a third of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and any move to strengthen their competitiveness has clear and positive implications for Malaysia's economic future."

Over the past three years, Malaysia has shown its efforts in combating corruption by setting up integrity units in all government agencies and government-linked companies.

Multinationals, publicly listed and government-linked companies have voluntarily strengthened internal controls and participated in a corporate integrity pledge exercise to show their commitment.

"If we deliver what we promise to the people which, in this case, is a concerted fight against corruption and deliver it on time, the currency will appreciate.

"The reward is not just a more open and transparent business environment with more vibrant markets and greater opportunity, but also a renewed faith in the ability of governments to change things for the better."

The ceremony was also attended by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Paul Low Seng Kuan, MACC chief commmissioner Tan Sri Abu Kassim Mohamed and SME chief executive officer Datuk Hafsah Ibrahim.

(Source: http://www.nst.com.my)