Najib: I want to make corruption part of Malaysia's past

SAN FRANCISCO: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak says he wants to make corruption part of Malaysia's past, not its future.

Speaking at the Commonwealth Club Lecture here on Monday, Najib said this meant changing organisational as well as business cultures.

"I have created a new governance and integrity minister role in the cabinet; it is held by the former president of the Malaysian chapter of Transparency International," he said.

Najib said his government had elevated Malaysia's anti-corruption agency - which answers annually to a parliamentary special committee on corruption, an independent advisory board, and a complaints committee - to self-regulated, independent commission status.

"It is our hope that the commission serve as an example for other countries looking to build the institutional capacity to combat corruption," he said.

After all, said the prime minister, for governance and commerce alike, the most vital currency was trust.
"If we deliver what we have promised to the people - in this instance, a concerted fight against corruption - and deliver consistently over time, that currency will appreciate.

Najib: I want to make corruption part of Malaysia's past, not its future

Najib delivering his speech at the seminar

KUALA LUMPUR:  Legal provisions on corporate liability are being drafted to complement existing laws to promote business ethics, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.


"To truly build sustainable economies, we must also signal our commitment to ethical business practices by acting and reforming to tackle corruption at home," he said when closing a train-the trainer workshop here.

The workshop covers voluntary code of business ethics in medical, biopharmaceutica as well as construction in engineering sectors organised by the Malaysia Institute of Integrity.

"I want to make corruption part of Malaysia's past, not its future.