Will fat salaries curb graft?Andrew Ong
Nov 10, 09
5:42pmShould elected representatives be given a pay rise so they are less prone to graft?
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) - to which the proposal was attributed in the New Straits Times today - apparently said that improved financial incentives could stem abuse of power and graft amongst lawmakers.
The English-language daily quoted a source as saying that the MACC's suggestion took into account that Singapore legislators are highly paid.
Today, however, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz dismissed the report as “rubbish”, while MACC denied this evening that it had issued any statement on the matter. It added that various suggestions are still under review.
Prior to these developments, Malaysiakini had sought views of experts on the 'proposal'.
Civil Movement against Corruption chair Mohd Nazree Yunus agreed with the suggestion, on the condition that any increase in remuneration is based on performance.
“This mechanism will close the spaces that expose elected representatives of potentially indulging in corruption,” he said, adding that a key-performance index monitoring system for elected representatives should be in place.
Another factor in combatting graft among lawmakers is to ensure that the disbursement of state or federal funds for each constituency must be disbursed fairly.
“This happens in Europe and other developed countries where partisan politics does not become a factor in the distribution of such funds,” he added.
Transparency International Malaysia secretary-general Ngooi Chiu Ling said that, in Singapore, paying lawmakers a hefty salary “seem to work” in combatting graft.
“Singaporeans feel happy with this arrangement. It is a fairly corruption-free society,” he said, when contacted.
However, he also said that being a lawmaker is a form of public service, which entails sacrifice rather than of financial gain.
According to the NST report, Malaysian MPs make RM6,000 a month while their Singaporean counterparts are paid $13,710 (RM33,500) a month.
'MACC should buck up'
Centre of Policy Initiative director Lim Teck Ghee opined that rampant graft in the country should be attributed, among others, to MACC's failure to combat graft effectively.
He said anti-graft laws are being selectively enforced coupled with a “culture of corruption” among those with high-level authority and power.
Lim noted that there has been no evidence thus far to show a correlation between salary of a legislator and the extent of corruption.
“To suggest that a pay rise will help curb graft is quite ludicrous,” said the former World Bank economist.
Lim adds that any pay rise for legislators should be based on merit, including such factors as the increased cost of running and maintaining political office.
“Such a case must be set out in full and made transparent so that the public has the data on all the payments and other entitlements that the different categories of elected representatives currently obtain,” he said.
Lim added that the current economic downturn is also not conducive for a pay rise, a point that Nazri has also made.
Nov 10, 09
5:42pmShould elected representatives be given a pay rise so they are less prone to graft?
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) - to which the proposal was attributed in the New Straits Times today - apparently said that improved financial incentives could stem abuse of power and graft amongst lawmakers.
The English-language daily quoted a source as saying that the MACC's suggestion took into account that Singapore legislators are highly paid.
Today, however, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz dismissed the report as “rubbish”, while MACC denied this evening that it had issued any statement on the matter. It added that various suggestions are still under review.
Prior to these developments, Malaysiakini had sought views of experts on the 'proposal'.
Civil Movement against Corruption chair Mohd Nazree Yunus agreed with the suggestion, on the condition that any increase in remuneration is based on performance.
“This mechanism will close the spaces that expose elected representatives of potentially indulging in corruption,” he said, adding that a key-performance index monitoring system for elected representatives should be in place.
Another factor in combatting graft among lawmakers is to ensure that the disbursement of state or federal funds for each constituency must be disbursed fairly.
“This happens in Europe and other developed countries where partisan politics does not become a factor in the distribution of such funds,” he added.
Transparency International Malaysia secretary-general Ngooi Chiu Ling said that, in Singapore, paying lawmakers a hefty salary “seem to work” in combatting graft.
“Singaporeans feel happy with this arrangement. It is a fairly corruption-free society,” he said, when contacted.
However, he also said that being a lawmaker is a form of public service, which entails sacrifice rather than of financial gain.
According to the NST report, Malaysian MPs make RM6,000 a month while their Singaporean counterparts are paid $13,710 (RM33,500) a month.
'MACC should buck up'
Centre of Policy Initiative director Lim Teck Ghee opined that rampant graft in the country should be attributed, among others, to MACC's failure to combat graft effectively.
He said anti-graft laws are being selectively enforced coupled with a “culture of corruption” among those with high-level authority and power.
Lim noted that there has been no evidence thus far to show a correlation between salary of a legislator and the extent of corruption.
“To suggest that a pay rise will help curb graft is quite ludicrous,” said the former World Bank economist.
Lim adds that any pay rise for legislators should be based on merit, including such factors as the increased cost of running and maintaining political office.
“Such a case must be set out in full and made transparent so that the public has the data on all the payments and other entitlements that the different categories of elected representatives currently obtain,” he said.
Lim added that the current economic downturn is also not conducive for a pay rise, a point that Nazri has also made.
