Welcome to the World Anti-Corruption Conference. Never have we reached a better time to address the issue of corruption in the Corruption Perception Index (CPI), and many countries continue to slide down a slope so dangerous that it may take us decades to fix what is broken in our justice and accountability systems.
We are all concerned about the state of corruption in our country. If it is of any consolation, corruption is also rampant in many parts of the world, but in those countries where corruption is out of control, the damage to the economy is often irreparable, destroying purchasing power, devaluing the currency and deters needed investment into the country.
It is therefore imperative for us to garner our efforts in different sectors to collectively devise efficient ways to deal with this deep-rooted malaise to save our country from further damage.
Corruption thrives in an environment where strong cohesive rules are absent, but even when those rules are in place, the lack of political will to implement such rules is the biggest contributing factor to the incidence of corruption. Therefore, in order for us to stand a chance to fight corruption, all sectors of society need to work together, and most importantly, the agencies dedicated to fighting corruption must be impartial and free from political interference at any cost.
Only when these measures are put in place can we envision a more progressive country, in line with our bid to become a developed nation in years to come.
The 3rd Malaysia Anti-Corruption Forum organised by ISI on 24 May 2022 is one such effort in bringing all these issues to light, and once and for all allow us to find the most efficient means of moving forward against corruption. I would like to wish the best of luck to all speakers and participants in the ensuing discussions and hope that at the end of the day, we will be able to find important gems of ideas that can spur our fight against corruption.
Thank you.
CY CHEAH
Founder and Chairman
International Strategy Institute (ISI)