The survey by Ernst & Young Fraud Investigation and Dispute Services Asia-Pacific also revealed that 39 per cent of respondents said that bribery and corruption practices happen widely in Malaysia. “Our survey finds that bribery and corrupt practices are prevalent in Malaysia. 39 per cent of respondents say that bribery or corrupt practices happen widely in Malaysia, which is nearly double the Asia-Pacific average of 21 per cent,” said the Asia-Pacific Fraud Survey Report Series 2013. “In addition, 29 per cent of respondents say that bribery or corrupt practices have increased due to tough economic times and increased competition, which is the third highest amongst the countries surveyed.” But it was the number who said Malaysian businesses would be willing to cut corners in a challenging business climate that stood out most. A total of 54 per cent Malaysians agreed that companies take shortcuts, far surpassing other countries surveyed and is double the regional average of 27 per cent. In comparison, neighbouring Indonesia saw 29 per cent of respondents agreeing; in Singapore, the figure was 11 per cent. Among the countries surveyed, South Korea had the lowest figure at only 6 per cent, followed by Australia at 10 per cent. Despite over 77 per cent of companies in Malaysia having whistleblowing schemes in place -- the highest in the region — respondents expressed their concerns over the use of the schemes. “The top concerns are the lack of independence of the person receiving the complaints and the fear that reporting unethical behaviours would have a negative impact on their career,” the report said. The survey was carried out between March and May this year, involving 681 executives, senior managers and employees in Asia-Pacific, including 103 respondents from Malaysia. Several cases of collapsed public infrastructure projects have been reported in the past few years, prompting concerns that Malaysian contractors might be cutting corners to keep costs down, with limited budget and rising prices of building materials. In June, a section of the Second Penang Bridge collapsed, killing one person in the incident. A subsequent investigation found the cause of the mishap to be procedural and technical negligence by the contractor.   A flyover in Selangor Science Park in Cyberjaya collapsed in February this year, after it was closed to repair a road that had begun to sink beneath it. In the same month the roof the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium in Kuala Terengganu collapsed for the second time while undergoing re-construction work after a previous collapse in June 2009. The roof of a mosque near Kuala Berang, also in Terengganu, fell in May this year allegedly due to a steel structure that could not bear the weight of the tiles. In January 2011, the ceiling of Hospital Serdang’s main lobby collapsed, six years after it began operations. The government has come under pressure to rein in its spending in recent years, after amassing a national debt of over 53 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) from years of running a budget deficit. It aims to trim the deficit to 3.5 per cent in 2014 and 3.0 per cent of GDP the year after.