Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia`s prime minister Monday said he would boost the powers of the country`s anti-corruption agency in a bid to step up the battle against graft.
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi`s announcement comes amid growing calls to clamp down on corruption in the country, one of the issues that led many voters to switch sides in recent elections.
"My government will restructure the anti-corruption agency... to become a full-fledged Malaysian Commission on Anti-Corruption," Abdullah said.
"To enhance its effectiveness, transparency and public accountability the new commission structure will be set up to include a system of effective checks and balances," he added.
"It is my fervent hope that by restructuring the (agency), its effectiveness, transparency and accountability will be considerably raised while public trust in its integrity and independence will be quickly renewed."
The agency, currently under Abdullah`s office, will report to a new parliamentary committee on corruption prevention.
He said the committee would further enhance transparency and public accountability as it could seek clarification on the new body`s annual reports.
Abdullah said a new whistle-blower`s act would also be introduced to give better protection to those who come forward to testify against corrupt practices.
The prime minister won a landslide victory in 2004 on an anti-corruption ticket, but opposition leaders and observers say progress has been slow, with few meaningful reforms.
Unprecedented losses in March polls saw Abdullah come under pressure to quit but the embattled premier says he has a mandate and has pledged to implement all his past promises in his second term in office.
The government has been hit by numerous scandals in recent years with a minister, judges and several politicians facing corruption charges.
Former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim unleashed a furore last year by releasing a video clip apparently showing a lawyer telling a judge over the phone that he would put him forward for a top job.
A royal commission set up to investigate the tape has yet to submit its findings.
Source: news.yahoo.com (22 April 2008)
