Give Us A Few Years To End Kleptocracy Says Anwar

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Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim surrounded by well-wishers at a rally with civil servants in Penang.BUKIT MERTAJAM: Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has appealed to the public to give his government “a few years” to get rid of corruption and plundering of the country’s resources.
Speaking to civil servants in Penang, Anwar said kleptocracy is institutionalised corruption and is not defined by the actions of a single person.
While steps are being taken to rid kleptocracy in government, it would take a few years before it is completely eradicated through good governance.
Ads by Kiosked“You must give us a few years to get rid of corruption and plunder,” he said at a rally with civil servants in his hometown of Permatang Pauh here.
-ADVERTISEMENT-Ads by Anwar said once corruption was curbed, then the savings could be channelled to the people.
He lamented that Malaysia was no longer known for its multicultural society or good economic performance, but for the 1MDB scandal instead.
1MDB was a state fund set up by former prime minister Najib Razak in 2009. It was later revealed that over US$4 billion had been stolen from the fund. The disclosures came partly through the efforts of the international kleptocracy unit of the US Federal Bureau of Investigations.
It was during this period that Pakatan Harapan, then in opposition, used the term kleptocracy to describe Najib’s government and branded several leaders as kleptocrats.
Anwar also said he had looked into past decisions made by the previous governments and found that they were motivated by “greed and deceit”.
Ads by KioskedHe said he has instructed the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission to take action regardless who the culprits are or which political party they are from.
“If there is a case, the attorney-general will prosecute,” he said. - FMT

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