My Proposal For A New MACC Chief Commissioner…

On a Boxing Day (a day to donate gifts to those in need) afternoon, the High Court came out with a verdict for one of the longest and most closely watched trials in the country. The fifteen years jail sentence (on concurrent basis) may not be the longest but the total fine of RM11.4 billion and in default, 40 years’ imprisonment, after finding ‘Bossku’ guilty, may be the highest imposed on an individual. This is his second trial for a multi-billion-ringgit state funds scandal.

The Malaysian Bar president said, the length of the judgment was a natural consequence of the complexity of the case, and the focus should remain on the quality, transparency and legal reasoning of the decision, which is subject to scrutiny through the appellate process. The judgment took about five hours to deliver after several breaks.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner said the investigation had experienced significant legal, technical, and jurisdictional challenges and it reflects the fulfillment of our responsibility and duty to the nation.

A 2015 document leak reported in The Edge, Sarawak Report, and The Wall Street Journal showed that over RM 2.67 billion was channelled into a personal bank account from 1MDB. In July 2016, a Department of Justice civil lawsuit alleged a high-ranking government official to have received around US$681 million (RM 2.8 billion) of stolen 1MDB money via a bank in Singapore in March 2013.

The verdict was the culmination of a decade-long investigation by MACC where some former government officials said was systematically obstructed. We also saw and heard many lawmakers making statements for or against ‘Bossku’ during investigations.

The ruling may have big political ramifications and an appeal has been filed.

This scandal was a turning point that saw the downfall of UMNO in 2018 after more than six decades in power but UMNO is now part of the coalition government. 

The final outcome will be an important test towards political accountability and the rule of law. 

 

What next?

We seriously need institutional reforms, uphold justice and to defend the sovereignty of the rule of law without fear or favour. More needs to be done to strengthen enforcement agencies and transparency in prosecutions.  

The DAP chairman urged for political will to confront wrongdoing at the highest levels and urgent changes at the MACC. There are serious concerns over how certain arrests, investigations and cases are handled. He also called for the development of new governance structures and mechanisms to ensure cases like 1MDB do not recur.

As for MACC, the current chief commissioner has received three contract extensions and due to retire soon. 

Look no further. 

I would like to propose an ex-senior MACC officer, Datuk Bahri Mohammad Zin be appointed as the new MACC chief commissioner. He is a civil servant who resisted political interference including police raids and the arrest of fellow investigators and has shown integrity and fulfillment of responsibility and duty to the nation without fear or favour.

His famous words, “You have power. I have Allah” still rings in my ear and he felt he had “sinned against 30 million Malaysians” when the case was initially stalled, took early retirement. Unable to convince the system, when others stayed silent, he chose integrity. He was the director of the MACC’s Special Operations Division.

He has passed with excellence, the defining test of Malaysia’s institutional integrity.

If we are really serious about fighting abuse of power, against corruption and for reforms, “He is da man”.

What say you…

Saleh Mohammed