Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi may be the best man to fight corruption in Malaysia, but then the problem may be that too many people in high places (including possibly himself or his family members) may have been guilty of some little act of corruption in the past.
Over the years, there have been too one too many accusations levied - even against some who are still serving in the cabinet.
The way forward may be to set a date, let's say Jan 1, 2005, and take a position that all corrupt acts before that date will not be investigated and that there will be no prosecution of those who have been guilty of past acts of corruption.
But any act of corruption that happens thereafter will not be tolerated and the government will act positively and definitely to take action against whoever is involved.
This may be the only way forward in the fight against corruption. Today. many will admit that they may have been guilty of corruption, be it as giver or recipient.
I believe that unless such an amnesty is provided, even our Malaysian parliamentarians may not be willing to fully commit to an all out fight against corruption. Unlike the past, corruption today seems to have become the norm and seems to be a common occurrence at all levels of society.
If this idea is adopted, the prime minister and the government must then let loose after Jan 1, 2005, the full force of the Anti-Corruption Agency, the police and the Attorney-General's Chambers and empower them with the full freedom and prosecute all who are guilty of any kind of corrupt act committed.
There must also be a serious media campaign as to what constitute corruption. Frankly speaking, many a Malaysian is not really clear on what would constitutes an act of corruption. The people must also be educated on how they can make a complaint on corrupt practices.
The media, too, must be set free to seek out and expose all kinds of corruption.
Some pessimists may say that it is now 'too late' to fight corruption in Malaysia as it is has become ingrained in our society. After all, there is corruption even in Umno and the police force .
That may be so but whatever the case, we must be optimistic and commit ourselves to an all out effort to weed out all elements of corruption in Malaysia. Corruption is killing the country and is most definitely making our economy suffer. Corruption is turning away foreign investments.
Mr Prime Minister, please lead on and I believe that all good, law-abiding and loyal Malaysians, concerned about the common good of our nation and its citizenry, will be completely behind you.
