KOTA BHARU: A total of 55.2 per cent out of the total number of arrests made by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) from 2013 to May 2018, involved individuals aged 45 and below, also categorised as youth.
Kelantan MACC director Ramli Ismail said the number of arrests was alarming as it involved individuals that one day would be the future leaders of the country.
“In 2002, a survey on corruption perception among Malaysians carried out by the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia involved 494 respondents (of students) found that 69.2 per cent of them agreed to accept or to solicit bribes.
“Another 30.5 per cent of were willing to accept bribes if there was power involved, while 23.7 per cent were willing to solicit bribes to avoid from being punished and 15 per cent were willing to do the same to solve their problems,” he said.
He was speaking to reporters when attending the Universiti Malaysia Kelantan (UMK)’s Integrity Day and the signing of the corruption-free pledge by 23 UMK staff at its Kota Campus hall here yesterday.
The event was officiated by UMK vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Husaini Omar and was also attended by deputy vice-chancellor (Academic & International) Prof Dr Mohd Rafi Yaacob.
Ramli said, now, 16 years after the survey was carried out, the findings had turned into reality when more than half of the arrests made by MACC involved those in the age group.
“We want the university to emphasise study modules that emphasise integrity to be instilled among to students to prevent corruption from getting worse among the youth.
“By providing continuous exposure to increase the awareness on corruption among university-level students, I believe the corrupt practices among the young people will be able to be reduced,” he said. – Bernama