25 Oct 2012

Phang: Unusual precedent being set over RM40mil affair

24 Oct 2012

‘Nobody gives free political donations’

PETALING JAYA: The government has been urged to draft a new law to address the issue of political donations, which according to former MACC advisory panelist Robert Phang, is tantamount to bribery.

“Nobody would give you free things or free money. And in Malaysia it must be in exchange for certain favours. Either they expect you to give them something or it has already been granted,” he said.

He said that the law must include sections that requires those who intend to give such donations to declare their objectives. The donor, he added, must also have “no interests whatsoever” in dealing with the government.

Phang said that the government’s reply on the issue so far has been shocking, and is akin to giving all political parties a “license to collect”.

“If this area is not carefully and seriously addressed, it will condone very bad practices to have political parties just simply collect [money] from anyone. The gates are left wide open and sets a dangerous precedent,” he warned.

Phang said that during the 6th International Association Of Anti-Corruption Authorities (IAAC) conference recently, he posed this question about political donations in a workshop chaired by IAAC general counsellor Bulelani Ngcuka and attended by eight international rapporteurs.

22 Oct 2012

DAP: MACC hasn't ruled out RM40mil was smuggled

18 Oct 2012

Police still investigating book on the attorney-general

16 Oct 2012

'Political contributions graft if there's no transparency'

Are political donations done discreetly and not in a transparent manner a form of corruption?

Or could the controversial RM40 million allegedly channel from Hong Kong to Sabah Umno be a form of money-laundering?

One of the lingering questions that emerged at the International Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities (IAACA) conference that ended last week, and iremains a bone of contention, is whether political contributions can be considered a form of corruption.

NONEThis question was posed to the panel during the ICACC by a member of the floor during the conference, way before the same matter was answered by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department and de facto law minister Nazri Abdul Aziz in Parliament.

The question whether the Malaysian arrested in Hong Kong for having a RM40 million, which was allegedly to be channelled to a Sabah political party, was considered as a form of corruption was posed to MACC deputy head of prosecution Anthony Kevin Morais and Hong Kong director of prosecution Kevin Zervos. The moderator for the panel was former Federal Court judge Abdul Kadir Sulaiman.

5 Oct 2012

Experts: MACC's procedures flawed, not the law

3 Oct 2012

Graft confab a sandiwara, says Robert Phang

KUALA LUMPUR: A former MACC adviser has poured scorn on the international anti-corruption conference that begins here tomorrow, calling it a waste of time and an occasion for the Malaysian government to pretend that that it is serious about fighting graft.

Robert Phang, who resigned from the MACC advisory panel last year, said today that the sixth conference of the International Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities would be worthwhile only if the Malaysian delegation were to use it as an opportunity to address long-standing allegations against Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail.

The conference “looks good on the macro scale”, he told FMT. “But when it comes down to the real deal, the micro, it doesn’t address anything. It will put on a good show, pretending that the MACC and government mean business in combating corruption.

“The message from Malaysia has to be clear. Under current practices, the AG’s powers seem absolute. There are corruption allegations against him, but how can MACC act properly when prosecution powers lie solely with the AG’s Chambers?”

2 Oct 2012

MCPF MELAWAT POLIS MANGSA TEMBAK

PETALING JAYA, 29 Sept -- Naib Pengerusi Yayasan Pencegahan Jenayah Malaysia (MCPF), Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye (tiga kiri) bertanya khabar kepada Koperal R. Subramaniam, 51, mangsa kes tembak sekumpulan penjenayah ketika mengadakan lawatan di Pusat Perubatan Universiti Malaya (PPUM) di sini hari ini.

Mangsa merupakan anggota polis unit peronda (MPV) dari Ibu Pejabat Polis Daerah Brickfields yang cedera di bahagian perut dan rakan setugasnya Koperal Nor Azlan Abu Bakar, 41, cedera di leher dalam kejadian kira-kira 6.45 petang pada 27 September lepas, dua anggota berkenaan ditembak ketika cuba melakukan pemeriksaan ke atas sebuah kereta yang dinaiki empat lelaki di persimpangan lampu isyarat di kawasan Lebuhraya Kuala Lumpur-Putrajaya berdekatan Kuchai Lama di sini.

Turut hadir isteri mangsa, P. Jiverege, 45, (dua, kanan), Ahli Exco MPCF, Tan Sri Robert Phang Miow Sin (dua kiri) dan Datuk Wong Pui Lam (kiri).


Source : Bernama