KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 31 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s commitment to practicing good governance, transparency, integrity, and accountability in his government gives fresh hope for the country’s fight against corruption.
Transparency International-Malaysia (TI-M) president Muhammad Mohan said the government of Anwar came into office in November 2022 with clear priorities being expressed.
“He (Anwar) highlighted Malaysia’s precarious fiscal position which requires immediate attention.
“The Prime Minister also stated his commitment to practicing good governance, transparency, integrity, and accountability in his government. TI-Malaysia believes that both goals are inter-related,” he told a press conference after announcing the 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) here today.
Muhammad said Prime Minister’s hope must be translated into measurable action that produces the desired results if all parties wish to see Malaysia’s CPI score improved.
Muhammad said reducing corruption, leakages, wastage and non-viable projects would help improve Malaysia’s fiscal position.
“It will also make Malaysia a more attractive destination for foreign investment,” he added.
A public sector that practices good governance will also translate into better CPI scores for Malaysia moving forward, he said.
On CPI 2022, he said Malaysia is ranked 61st out of 180 countries compared to 62nd in 2021.
However, Malaysia’s 2022 CPI score deteriorated to 47 points, where 0 (zero) is perceived to be highly corrupted and 100 is perceived to be very clean. From a score of 53 in 2019, Malaysia’s score has fallen 6 points over the past three years. — Bernama
