THE absence of proper governance and integrity in Malaysia is the main reason why organised crime groups have been able to control large parts of the government and the economy, analysts said.

In the absence of a proper checks and balance mechanism, they said these groups will continue to exist at the expense of the country and the people.

Left unchecked, it will have a trans-generational impact, they added.

Rais Hussin, a researcher at Emir Research, said the proliferation of these groups is a structural problem that started in the 1980s.

“The government institutions for many years have been compromised,” Rais told The Malaysian Insight.

“In the 60s and 70s, they were of great repute. Then in the 80s, their reputation nosedived and today corruption is a way of life.

“If you don’t get involved in the way of life, then you are an outcast.”

There have been allegations of organised crime groups in the police force and the Immigration Department, plus influence in awarding government grants and contracts.

In December 2020, it was reported that a group had been selling imported meat passed off as halal with the help of corrupt government officials from multiple agencies.

This triggered widespread alarm in Muslim-majority Malaysia.

In March last year, former IGP Hamid Bador revealed that there were criminal elements within the police, which had manipulated promotions within the force.

A report by the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC) said it was unable to confirm Hamid’s claims, saying it found no basis to them.

In April the same year, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission revealed that a group controlled 150 companies and had been monopolising government tenders worth RM3.8 billion. A senior government official was also implicated.

Then in December, Home Minister Hamzah Zainuddin revealed the existence of a group working in the Immigration Department, issuing temporary employment visit passes (PLKS).

He said the group consisted of immigration officers at various levels who worked with criminal gangs to issue permits.

Rais said institutional changes must take place to eliminate these cartels.

“We need to revamp and get proper checks and balances and the right people in the right places or this will continue unabated.

“There must be some system, you cannot solve the problem artificially. With the fourth industrial revolution there are methods and ways to automate the tender processes.

“Once you use a system, it will reduce the tendency and propensity for corruption or crime to occur.

“You cannot eliminate them completely, there are loopholes, and the groups will stay ahead. A continuous improvement is needed,” he said.

Failing such measures, Rais said the impact to Malaysia would be felt across generations.

“There needs to be a major overhaul of government infrastructure, the civil service and GLCs for anything positive to happen.

“Otherwise, we face a bleak future. Corruption through organised crime will distort the country. The people will suffer and prices will go up.”

Clean up the political system

Political analyst James Chin of the University of Tasmania’s Asia Institute said corrupt politicians are enabling organised crime.

“These things happen because the politicians in power allowed it to happen,” he said.

“Crime will only work if there are dishonest politicians in power. Unfortunately, Malaysia has had dishonest politicians in power since independence, it (politics) is driven by money.

“Unless they clean up the money in the political system, it (crime) will always be there. If you clean up Malaysian politics, you can clean these (groups) up.”

The corruption combined with organised crime means that unscrupulous individuals fix the market to the detriment of the country and the public, Chin said.

“In Economics 101, you are supposed to let the market decide. In this case, they bypass the market, they fix the market.”

Using the employment of Bangladeshi workers as an example, Chin said groups prevent employers from directly hiring them. Instead, everything has to go through an agent.

“You can also see it in how we only employ foreign workers from certain countries.

“If it is a free market, then employees have the right to hire from any country. In this case they can’t and have to go through agents. It is distorting the market.

“The people suffer on both sides. The employers will get charged a fee by these agents to bring these workers in, plus the workers themselves also have to pay a fee.

“These groups work because they suck both the employers and employees dry.” – April 19, 2022.