Sunday October 25, 2009

Where’s the action?

By HARIATI AZIZAN, JOSEPH LOH and RASHVINJEET S. BEDI

Last week, the Auditor-General’s Report made headlines again as it exposed more poor administration and mismanagement of funds. Will sterner action be taken against the offenders this time?

A WHOPPING RM42,320 for an outdated-model laptop. A swivel chair price-tagged between RM810 and RM1,050. Yes, it is that time of the year again where we get to gasp in shock at some of the outrageous procurements and financial negligence of our hapless civil service.

The Auditor-General’s (AG) Report for 2008 was tabled in Parliament last Monday, and as in recent years, it highlighted the mismanagement of public funds by those entrusted to balance the country’s books.

Familiar tune: Ambrin with the 2007 report. Despite the powerful backlash f rom detractors of the Government that followed the reports of mismanagement of funds then, the weak nesses remain. – RAJA FAISAL HISHAN/The Star.

The gross expenditures mentioned above were made by Kolej Kemahiran Tinggi Mara Balik Pulau, Penang, which also spent RM2.08mil buying computer software it allegedly didn’t need.

It seems like only yesterday that another government training college, the National Youth Skills Institute or IKBN (under the administration of the Youth and Sports Ministry), was rapped for spending RM8.39mil above the market price for certain equipment – including a RM224 screwdriver set (of four) which had a RM40 market price; a RM5,700 car jack that would normally cost a mere RM50; and RM8,254 digital cameras that were retailing at RM2,990.

And what about the RM418,145 of welfare aid paid out to 184 undocumented –possibly non-existent – people, out of which 26 were confirmed dead? The 2006 report also showed that some other “dead” poor were receiving welfare aid.

The improprieties revealed by Auditor-General Tan Sri Ambrin Buang and the National Audit Department (NAD) this year again lay bare the weaknesses in the public system, which allow for incompetence and transgression to occur, if not flourish.

Worse, the report highlighted that federal ministries and departments generally have not shown much progress in managing their finances last year despite the measures taken to correct weaknesses in the system.

In fact, the report stated, many departments had spent in excess of their budgets.

Yet, despite the widespread media coverage, heated discussions among the public as well as the powerful backlash from detractors of the Government that followed the reports of mismanagement of funds in the past years, the weaknesses remain.

Why do cases of such misappropriation of public funds, ill-advised government investments, and delays in major government projects still persist?

And the crucial question that begs to be answered: “Will there be any action taken on the perpetrators of the alleged corrupt practices as documented in the report?”

Token action

Ambrin has repeatedly said the NAD has no jurisdiction to penalise offenders highlighted in the report.

“The NAD has no power to prosecute. The power to impose penalty for criminal acts lies with the court, whereas the power to impose surcharge for delinquent officers is with the Finance Ministry. Any disciplinary action will then be the responsibility of the heads of department,” he told reporters last year.

Where there are instances of corruption which can be proven in court, the court will impose appropriate penalties, he reiterated, explaining that corruption has to be proven according to the law, and it has to be substantiated with evidence and witnesses.

As such, investigation can only be done by authorities such as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) or the police.

MACC has assured that it would proceed with the necessary action should it find any irregularity in the AG’s report 2008, which it is studying to unearth elements of corruption, misconduct and abuse of power in the management of public funds.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has also been quick to say that action will be taken against those found guilty of misusing government funds.

Expressing his disappointment with the misconduct and abuse in the public sector, he assured that there would naturally be “punitive measures” for those identified.

In April last year, Najib, who was then DPM, had also vowed to correct the deficiencies in the public system as exposed by the 2006 AG’s report.

True to his word, he instituted key performance indicators (KPIs) and key result areas (KRAs) to measure the performance of the civil service, as part of the system of good governance.

Similarly, in 2007, after yet another edition of the A-G’s report was tabled, Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan announced that investigations will be conducted on government officers and staff implicated of corruption and mismanagement of public funds by the report. He assured that they would either be charged in court or face disciplinary action, and added that the Government would make public the “punishment” taken against them.

Sidek then proclaimed that the Public Service Department would also come out with a “demotion and disciplined” list every quarter so that the people would know action had been taken.

While some of the measures promised have been implemented – the spate of arrests of those involved were reported – the effectiveness of the “cleanup” measures is yet to be seen.

To date, fewer than 20 people have reportedly been arrested for the abuses and misconduct highlighted by the 2006 AG report.

The familiar tune emitting from the recent report further indicates that the crux of the problem has likely not been addressed.

Tunku Abdul Aziz Ibrahim, former president of Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M), doubts if any action will be taken against the perpetrators.

“Based on past records, I doubt that anything is going to happen. And next year there will be a repeat of the same thing. Those involved have never been hauled up or investigated. This happens because there is no political will,” says Tunku Aziz who is also the former special advisor to the United Nations (UN) Secretary General on the establishment of the ethics office.

He stresses that many of the cases highlighted by the AG’s report are tantamount to criminal offences as they involve cheating and breach of trust.

“Over the years, nothing has been done and why should it be any different now. The auditor-general has highlighted some very serious examples of poor governance, which should not be tolerated,” he laments, adding that in most countries, the AG’s reports are taken very seriously.

“The report here is not even discussed in parliament and given the attention it deserves,” he says.

Former audit officer Gursharan Singh concurs.

“The lack of action reflects badly on the different parties involved, from the Executive (the Government) to the enforcement agencies and judiciary. Some might think that they are colluding with each other,” says the pensioner who worked with the NAD for over 30 years.

TI-M secretary-general Dr Loi Kheng Min agrees that it is important for the authorities to demonstrate that they are serious in addressing the issue.

“They need to show that it is not just lip service. Although we already have the necessary agencies such as the MACC, the priority is not there and many are not bold enough to go all the way with the enforcement,” he says, stressing that it is crucial for the Government to enhance the effectiveness of the regulating agencies.

Dr Loi proposes that a compliance committee be set up to follow up the misconduct and abuse cases reported by the AG.

“The committee can focus on reviewing the report and recommend appropriate action to be taken.”

Public Accounts Committee (PAC) vice-chairman Dr Tan Seng Giaw, however, points out that the PAC is a body which can scrutinise the report and recommend for appropriate action.

“In fact, we are meeting the AG and his team on Wednesday for a full briefing on the report and we will then discuss its content and deliberate on possible action,” he says.

Although disappointed that the 2008 AG’s report has revealed more mismanagement of public funds, Dr Tan is nevertheless confident that the system in place is adequate to take the errant individuals to justice.

Still, he stresses, the modus operandi of the public administration offices needs to be reviewed.

Dr Loi agrees, saying: “We need to review existing procurement guidelines. Are they outdated? We also need to be more open and transparent in our tender system. This may help reduce the abuse of public finances.”

Gursharan Singh echoes the need for a more transparent open tender system.

“In Malaysia, contracts are substantially awarded on a consideration basis. This usually translates into low quality, bad planning, high cost and poor maintenance,” he says, adding that the Malaysian tender system used to be competitive but deteriorated after a change of administration policy in 1982.

Tunku Aziz strongly believes that the Government must do something to show that they do not tolerate the mismanagement that is happening – or risk losing public confidence.

“Unless they are seen to be serious, people will lose confidence in them. I am also talking about the Government agencies. The bad leadership in the various agencies and departments have allowed this situation to develop,” he says.

“Otherwise there is no point in having an auditor-general’s office. It should be closed down.”

Citing the example of the Kolej Kemahiran Tinggi Mara in Penang, Tunku Aziz says the institution should be closed down for financial mismanagement,

“These are public funds and someone should be held responsible,” he says.

Mohd Nazree Mohd Yunus, chairman for the Civil Movement Against Corruption (Gerak), believes the AG himself should lodge reports with the MACC in cases where there were mismanagement of funds and power.

“He has the authority to do so because he was involved in the report,” says Nazree.

He says that Gerak would be willing to make the reports if they were given the relevant records and documents from the Auditor-General’s office.

Nazree also suggests that government servants themselves lodge the reports.

“It would be a new culture and would show that the officers have integrity,” he says.

Related Story:
Cases of mismanagement

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