COMMENT | In August 2015, three grown men wept openly. There were hundreds at a gathering to say farewell to the three outstanding graft fighters. When it all ended with hugs and handshakes, there wasn’t a single pair of dry eyes. The trio’s only fault was to carry out their duties diligently ­– without fear or favour.

The trio – Abu Kassim Mohamed, Mohd Shukri Abdull and Mustafar Ali – the then three top people at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) were unceremoniously booted out of their offices at one go.

The official version was that Abu Kassim had decided to go into academia, Shukri opted for early retirement and Mustafar was sent not exactly to Siberia, but to the Immigration Department...