POWER corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Anybody who has read or heard about scandals involving powerful personalities in many countries, including our own, can trace the root cause of corruption to money.
The Oxford Dictionary of English Proverbs has 30 over entries on money. Two of them – ‘all things are obedient to money’ and ‘money makes the man’ – are enough for our purpose in this column today.
For the past couple of decades, Malaysians have been hearing about and experiencing how graft has wrought havoc to institutions and individuals in the country – and to the country’s finances. You know them all and I won’t bother you with details here.
The modern man (hereinafter male embraces female) can hardly survive without money; so man works for money for a living. He makes money through various means – fishing, farming, from his business ventures, salaries and wages, even from winnings from lotteries and other sources.
It is these ‘other sources’ that can often cause him trouble.
That’s what I perceive to be the intention of the federal government to make it compulsory for all members of Parliament to declare their assets.
By the way, what about the legislators of the state assemblies? Is there a move to make every member of the State Legislative Assembly declare their assets too?
For now let us talk about the federal legislators. A member of Parliament gets his monthly salary and other perks. Quite normal, nobody begrudges that.
But when he suddenly receives an abnormal sum of money and acquires expensive and showy assets from other sources of funds, he would be suspected of taking bribes. When asked, he’d start talking about lottery wins, speculative ventures in the stock market, investment in lucrative business ventures, or donations from wealthy foreign countries, inheritance from wealthy parents – lots of cock-and-bull stories. But he cannot stop people from wagging their tongues!
Why is he a potential suspect when he assumes the position of power in the government as a minister with a powerful portfolio?
It is because he is in a position to grant favours. Soon he falls into temptation to abuse that power and authority for his own personal advantage.
Inherent human frailty.
An MP may be an honourable legislator but he is also human. In some cases, long-serving honourable men have suddenly become dishonourable because of the power of money.
As a legislator, he helps make laws of a country. When he becomes a minister in the government and is allocated a portfolio that is invested with power and authority, he becomes a powerful man indeed in his society. And more power means more money; more money means more power.
Not every MP takes a bribe, however. If he has no favour to give in return, nobody offers him a bribe. He is not ‘obedient’ to money – a truly honourable MP, one of the rare species among the people walking along the corridors of power these days.
Normally, the members of Parliament legislate rules for the ordinary members of the public to observe, seldom for their own kind. This time, they make rules for their own group and they can be punished for lying if what they have listed out in their original statutory declarations does not truly reflect their hard- earned income.
They are also required to list out the assets of their immediate family members. Members of the family including those innocent ones are being painted with one brush.
It is when powerful people get into trouble that they realise what their money and power can do, bad or evil. They have to set a good example to their constituents. They must do something about regaining the good image of their institution, the Parliament, as well as that of the country.
Do you realise that the motion passed by Parliament on July 1 this year requiring each one of our parliamentarian to declare his or her assets is a presumption of wrongdoing? It presumes that an honourable member of the Malaysian Parliament is not being honourable because an honourable legislator is not expected to take or offer bribes.
The law that makes it mandatory for any of them to declare his or her assets presumes is a step in the right direction. It allows the authorities (the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, or MACC, assuming the role of ombudsman) to monitor the rise and fall of an MP’s bank account and to trace the new sources of his additional income.
The noble intention is to curb the practice of giving favours in return for a bribe of money or its equivalent, or even of a promise to give future favours for value. This is a good effort to reduce rampant corruption in this country.
However, time will tell if the mere act of declaring assets can help reduce the rampant giving of bribes in high places. The statutory declaration is submitted to the Speaker of Parliament within three months from the date of the passing of the motion. Then a copy of that declaration will be sent to the Chief Commissioner of the MACC.
I say, whoever in the MACC is entrusted with the job of monitoring the assets of MPs must be envious seeing loads of additional incomes and new properties of the MPs, taking particular note of the assets of his own MP in the process.
If you are a member of Parliament, having no power or authority to grant favours to anybody, nobody would deal with you.
Then why do you have to worry about declaring your personal assets and even those of the other members of your immediate family?
You will get my vote.
Comments can reach the writer via columnists@theborneopost.com.
Source : Borneo Post by Sidi Munan
Indie Borneo 