How can we trust the police and ACA?

The recent scandal involving a top police official is akin to a classic Hollywood cop movie.

Commercial Crimes Investigation Department (CCID) Director Comm Datuk Ramli Yusoff is being investigated by Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA). As it stands, Datuk Ramli Yusoff is subject to an ACA probe for allegedly not disclosing all his assets, which are worth about RM 27 million, according to The Star. These undeclared assets may include real estate and company bonds. In his statement however, Yusoff vehemently denied the accusations, further claiming that the ACA had violated Section 21 (4) of the ACA Act by exposing the nature of the investigation to the public.

He said he is being framed.

I find this dramatic turn of events disturbing. Nobody knows who the good guys are anymore. This incident further taints the image of our police force. They have once again become the butt of people’s jokes.

This sort of sensational story has both Malaysians and foreigners perturbed: Is Ramli Yusoff’s counter arguments valid? And how did ACA managed to gain access to the information that ultimately led to the investigation?

These are questions which are fundamental in determining ACA’s ability to conduct independent investigations.

One would do well to remember the high-profile investigation of ACA Director-General Datuk Seri Zulkipli Mat Noor for corruption not too long ago. The task of handling the investigation, ironically, fell into the hands of the Inspector-General (IGP) Tan Sri Musa Hassan.

How can we trust both the police force and ACA?

In an investigation where even the investigator’s transparency is under scrutiny, one wonders if justice will be served when Ramli Yusoff receives his verdict. And what if “appointed” judges had a hand in Ramli Yusoff’s case?

Juicy.

Here’s some food for thought: Why is government transparency and openness becoming more prominent these days? Is our country becoming more corrupt? Or could it be that certain parties are taking advantage of the situation for their personal interests? And why are there always more scandals close to the general election?

Malaysians are becoming more politically conscious due the scandals surfacing in the public service arena. And we have to continuously keep ourselves up to date with our country’s political landscape and think about how corruption affects all of us. Only then can we make informed choices during elections.

As for Ramli Yusoff and the other recent corruption scandals, we can only “trust” that our prime minister will clean up all the dirty politics.

I feel that his campaign against corruption is nothing but a farce.

As citizens, we may voice out against corruption via petitions and memorandums. But real and effective change can only happen if the top layers of government are serious about tackling corruption.

By NGAI JIN TIK