When I read the deputy prime minister's warning of stern action against match fixing and bribery in M-League football, I almost wanted to laugh to myself.
Please don’t get me wrong. It is not that I am tolerating corruption in football. Certainly it is one of the menaces that should be tackled for the good of the sport.
But I just feel that our priority is so mixed up.
I wish our DPM could give the same stern warning against corruption in general administration and government.
I wish he could urge the police and MACC to spring into action the same way he urged them to tackle bribery and match fixing in football.
Corruption and match fixing in football are a form of gambling. These are willing participants and they ought to know the consequences of their actions. They generally do not affect the man in the street as severely as corruption in government administration.
Hence, while it is not wrong for our DPM to talk about corruption in football, I guess it is much more productive and palatable for him to talk about corruption in government and urge for actions against it as urgently as in football.
We have often heard of limited resources and shortage of manpower in government administration although I generally do not quite believe it. So let’s get our priorities right.
There is no need to show our toughness against corruption only in football. Let’s get our more important things done over red herrings.
Then I read the DPM’s statement on the attorney-general's (A-G) proposal to increase penalties on those found guilty of leaking government official secret.
I am a little confused with his statement, perhaps it was deliberately done by him.
He warned the opposition not to politicise the A-G’s proposal, but at the same time he said and I quote, "This (decision) should be respected. The A-G's agenda is to enforce the law and not to politicise an issue and be inundated with the politicised interpretation of the issue. This should not be seen as a political issue by anyone, including the opposition".
What does this mean? Was there a double barrelled warning to the opposition as well as to the A-G?
As a DPM, I would prefer that he is more direct when the occasion allows it.
Under our present system of government, the A-G is a government servant. As a government servant, he has no policy-making role. He only enforces what is on the table. He may advise and suggest, but certainly not openly giving his opinion on how and why certain laws in the country should be made more severe and draconian.
That is certainly not his role. That is the role of the political masters and the will of the people through the legislature.
The A-G is not the sole authority to interpret our constitution and the extent of the rights it confers on citizens.
It is not for him to say that the constitution did not confer the “right to know” on the citizens.
Don’t read the constitution literally and line by line. Read the constitution in spirit and in essence, if we are sincere and democratic in our hearts.
May I urge our DPM to get his priorities right and to speak clearly and sternly. Anyone crossing the line should be restrained and reprimanded.
A happy Chinese New Year to those celebrating. – February 8, 2016.
* TK Chua reads The Malaysian Insider.
* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.
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