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Comment by Dr Tan Seng Giaw, DAP National Vice-Chairman and MP for Kepong on the Cabinet reshuffle by the Prime Minister. 8.1.2004.

After Dato' Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has taken over from Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad as Prime Minister of Malaysia, he has announced several initiatives including anti-corruption. Yesterday, he appointed Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak as his deputy and made four changes in the Cabinet.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister Dato' Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi appointed Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak as his Deputy, Datuk Dr Jamaluddin Jarjis to Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin Agriculture, Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Second Finance Minister and Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Effendi Norwawi Minister with Special Functions in the Prime Minister's Department. We hope this reshuffle can improve the efficiency of all the sectors.

Modernizing agriculture is correct. If Tan Sri Muhyiddin can use his experience to achieve this objective, then there will be progress in agriculture. We stress the importance of this sector.

Dato' Seri Abdullah heads three ministries, Prime Minister's Department, Home Affairs and Finance. He needs a superhuman ability to cope. No sooner had be become the PM, he has focused on several objectives such as anti-corruption, the rule of law, improvement of the delivery system, modernizing the police force and the promotion of economy. We have yet to see how the reshuffle fits into these objectives.

Is Datuk Seri Effendi assisting the PM to step up the supervision of corruption? This is a long and tedious work. As Dato' Seri Abdullah outlines his anti-corruption campaign, illegal elements devise multitudinous tactics. Can the arms of the law reach these people?

For example, an interloper is trespassing the green lung at Jalan Jambu Jerteh, Jinjang South, Kuala Lumpur. The City Hall enforcement has served a notice. But then, a Deputy Minister protects this interloper. The same interloper obtains Temporary Occupation License (TOL) for occupying land at the entrance of Jinjang North and Kepong Baru with surrounding busy traffic. He is doing what he likes.

The Government must ascertain the veracity of public complaints on suspected cases of corruption and dereliction of duties. It is difficult to find evidence and witness in a suspected case. The public and private sectors have irregularities. The issuance of summonses in traffic offence causes headache. If the fine is increased from RM300 to RM1,000, unscrupulous enforcers will have a field day. It makes their haggling easier. Even if a motorist does not commit an offence, the receipt of a notice means either going to court or paying RM1,000. Some may simply pay RM20, RM30, RM40, RM50 or RM100 or more cash on the spot to the irresponsible enforcer. Just imagine what will happen if more power of issuing notice is given to all the police personnel.

According public complaints, something irregular happens at a certain MAS ticketing office. We hope the Government investigates. If seats for the economy class of a scheduled flight from KL to London are full but those in the business class are not, a passenger on waiting list has to pay over RM3,000 extra to obtain a business seat. A rapacious ticketing clerk suggests that the anxious passenger pays 200 pounds or the equivalent in US dollars for the seat. The passenger does not pay straightaway. After he or she has boarded the plane, a relative or friend pays cash quietly to the seedy clerk. Presumably he or she is in a syndicate.

It seems that unscrupulous elements in many sectors do not pay much attention to the anti-corruption activities. The PM has to be more alert, improving his supervision. Perhaps, one of the aims of the reshuffle is to increase the efforts to eradicate corruption.

Dr Tan Seng Giaw