What used to be by stealth now becomes blatant corruption. When allegations were made, there was no need to deny. What can be more obvious than living beyond one's means? And not only that, but by buying high profile properties here and abroad. It seems it was Tun Dr. Mahathir who changed the law to stop ACA then from going after those with questionable ability to own expensive properties. With the Official Secrets Act, even those with the information are unable to disclose what they know and which they cannot without getting into trouble with the law. What irony! Apparently, if you are with them, everything is above board.
It does not take rocket science to seek out those who are corrupted because they are also proud to display their wealth. Lately, we have cases of costs overrun not in terms of percentage but by multiples. Lop-sided agreements between government and private sector could be signed with impunity, again and again. There are no obvious controls judging from the recurrence of such mega projects.
Common sense and reasonableness tests seem to escape those in authority which led to buying overpriced defence equipment added with ludicrously overgenerous commissions (under whatever guise or description), unnecessary government guarantees which bound us to pay regardless of circumstances, down to procurements of the most basic items at multiples of market prices. To the average layman, the absurdity of it all makes him wonder why no actions seem to be taken by our MACC! It is a case of culprits carrying out their illegal activities recklessly, yet MACC seem to turn a blind eye!
The chain starts from perpetrator, his immediate superior, internal auditor, his overall head of department, the Auditor General or external auditor, the Minister, and ultimately the Prime Minister. Surely if the lower rungs have been effective, unreasonable expenditure would have been stopped before they got out of hand. But the bureaucracy is such that it would take at least one year before anything could be discovered by the AG, and even that does not guarantee prompt action to correct the situation.
Any mega projects could be secretly contracted by direct negotiations without open tender. They might be discussed after the event because of the huge cost overruns, in Parliament. But we can see how ineffective this has been, with questions being disallowed or only allowed a few minutes. The Public Accounts Committee are headed by people without audit experience and apparently without real powers, as we have seen how ineffective it has been.
The whole thing seems like a charade at the end of which no culprits would be found guilty for whatever inappropriate or illegal actions they have done. Now the people are getting fed up of the situation and hope and even demand for a change of government, knowing the present seems beyond redemption.
