GEORGE TOWN, Jan 22 — There were only six corruption cases against civil servants in Penang state agencies last year, according to state secretary Datuk Seri Zulkifli Long.

He said the state government received letters from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on the cases in Penang.

“For the whole of 2025, there were a total of 27 cases, but out of this, only six involved state government agencies, while the others involved federal agencies,” he said in a press conference after the first civil service assembly for 2026 at Dewan Sri Pinang this morning.

He said disciplinary action will be taken against those involved in accordance with the existing rules, including cases that were proven in court.

Meanwhile, Penang MACC director Datuk S. Karunanithy said last year, five arrests were made involving the Penang Island City Council (MBPP).

“We have completed investigations into some of the cases, three of the individuals were referred for departmental action, one (case) is under review by the Deputy Public Prosecutor and one is still ongoing,” he said.

He said MACC received about 37 tip-offs or pieces of information involving MBPP, which he revealed yesterday after a dialogue session with MBPP.

“It’s specific on MBPP because yesterday we have a programme with MBPP, so I highlighted the cases or information received on MBPP,” he said.

Commenting on this, Penang chief minister Chow Kon Yeow welcomed the actions taken by MACC following reports received, including bringing cases to court.

“In addition to that, disciplinary action can also be taken against cases at the departmental level,” he said.

He said this served as a reminder to all civil servants and administrative leaders that abuse of power and corruption are criminal acts that will be punished severely.

“This is to uphold the integrity and dignity of the civil service and the state government, to ensure that we are accountable in delivering services and implementing projects in the state,” he said.

He said this is also to ensure that corrupt practices will not undermine the implementation of projects in the state while fair and honest decision-making will uphold the integrity of the state civil service.

“All of these are essential elements of service to the people, because anything to the contrary would compromise our decisions and potentially compromise the effectiveness of service delivery or project implementation for the public,” he said.

He said every year, there will be complaints and investigations if cases arise.

“This is an important reminder to all of us to be clean, efficient, and trustworthy when entrusted with a mandate as civil servants and state leaders,” he said.

On the state civil service assembly, Chow said it is held twice a year, once at the beginning of the year and once in the second half.

He said generally, the assemblies are held to share the state’s focus along with its goals and vision with the civil servants.

“In the next one to two years, I believe we will focus on the implementation of projects in Penang to ensure these projects are completed according to schedule,” he said.

He said the state will also need to look at managing the impact of the projects, especially mega projects that may impact traffic flow in the state.