MALAY-Muslim politicians must get rid of the patronage system to eradicate corruption and abuse of power, Maszlee Malik said.

He said the money politics involved in the patronage system is the root of bad behaviours. The patronage system is a practice in which political parties and leaders reward active supporters by appointing them to government posts and with other favours.

Maszlee was speaking at a forum organised by Malay daily Sinar Harian entitled Corruption and Hypocrisy in Malay-Muslim politics. Also in the forum were former Perak Menteri Besar and current Barisan Nasional secretary-general Zambry Abdul Kadir, Kuala Selangor MP Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad and Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.

“What we also don’t talk about is the patronage system in Malay-Muslim politics. In Malay parties, patronage is key,” he said.

“To become a leader, they need to have money to buy people to their side and climb up the political ladder.

“When they eventually become members of Parliament or ministers, they have to regain their ‘investments’. To “halal” (legitimise) the money or bribes that they received, they pass it off as a political donation,” he said.

Maszlee, who is also the Simpang Renggam MP, said this system must be replaced with one that ensures warlords don’t become leaders.

“We need to have a patronage of ideas, policy and service. Only then will Malaysia advance.”

No shame

Maszlee, who was the former education minister under Pakatan Harapan, said that corruption and abuse of power are prevalent in society now because people don’t have shame.

“Today, many don’t work. They take money from others, steal, are lazy, take bribes and give tenders away for riches because they have no shame.

“They steal a lot of money because they have no shame, and they use God’s name to justify their actions,” he said.

When people act with no shame, society then becomes greedy, he added.

“The Japanese have this concept. When they are faced with immense shame, they commit harakiri. The Chinese prioritise face value, shame. Among the Malays, in the past we had the same. As time passed, we have lost this feeling.

“When you lose shame, you become greedy. To overcome corruption and abuse of power, we have to instil shame in the individual.”

The Malay-Muslims who are the majority in the country also need to lead by example and have integrity, Maszlee said.

“We can be an example if we have integrity. We stand by our principles, by walking the talk.”

Overhauling the system

Syed Saddiq said corruption had been normalised in society and called for an overhaul of the entire political system.

“We always hear the slogan that the Malays must unite in order to be strong. But what are we uniting for?

“Imagine if all Malay-Muslim politicians, party presidents and MPs unite to commit to returning power to Parliament as a check and balance mechanism, and enact the anti-hopping bill among others, we can remove money politics.”

“If the system is not overhauled, regardless of leaders young and old, they will eventually capitulate to it.

“If corruption is normalised by the system of old, you can have one million youths in politics but it will be meaningless if the system will consume their integrity and dignity for the sake of remaining in power,” Syed Saddiq said.

Zambry added that Malaysia needed to learn from its past in order to move forward.

In the context of Umno, he said that while the party had returned to power, it could sit on its laurels. Instead, it must reflect on its past failures in order to come back stronger.

“In the Umno and Barisan Nasional context, as a party that has been around for seven decades, there have been ups and downs.

“And from this, we learn to make changes, including institutional changes. If we can do this, we can do it together, not just within the party but also cross party,” said Zambry who is also an Umno Supreme Council member.

Dzulkefly, meanwhile, said strong institutions were the backbone of eradicating corruption.

“When institutions fail, corruption will thrive, especially if it is committed by political leaders.”

Citing the recent Court of Appeal judgment in the Najib Razak SRC International trial, he said the case showed what a strong judiciary could do.

“After the COA affirmed the decision (of the High Court), it showed that strong institutions are important. Leaders and politicians come and go, but institutions must be strong.”

The Court of Appeal upheld Najib’s conviction and sentence in relation to the SRC International case. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison and fined RM210 million after he was found guilty of seven charges of abuse of power, money laundering and criminal breach of trust.

 Dzulkefly added that it had also become a norm to trust leaders who behave badly and hold them up on a pedestal. – December 16, 2021.