JULY 16 — As a Malaysian and an investor in Malaysian equities, I find the recent acid attack on a senior official of the local stock exchange Bursa Malaysia Securities very disturbing.

According to investigators, and as reported in the media, the heinous crime could be linked to the victim's work with the exchange where he worked in the corporate surveillance unit.

The reports also noted that there had been previous police reports made due to damage to his car and threatening calls made to the victim. It is safe to assume that the victim carried on his duties fearlessly despite the threats and intimidation.

The victim's persistence in carrying out his duties to serve without fear or favour is exemplary, but his persistence made the culprits even bolder, culminating in the acid attack just last week in broad daylight.

Failing to intimidate and deter the victim earlier, the objective of the acid attack was clear, to maim and disfigure, as well as scar psychologically. What could be the end game of the people behind the attack?

The incident raises two main issues, will the attack work in deterring the authorities such as the Police and Bursa Malaysia from pursuing, without fear or favour, market players who break the rules? If the perpetrator(s) are left unpunished, it could send a very wrong and damaging message that there is no rule of law in Malaysia. We definitely do not want Malaysia to be considered as "gangster-land.”

Secondly, was there adequate protection given to our enforcer of the law (in this case, the senior official of Bursa Malaysia) all this while given that the earlier intimidation would suggest that his safety had been threatened.

Without such an assurance, how will all our enforcers of law (which include personnel from the Police, MACC, Securities Commission, Bank Negara Malaysia, Bursa Malaysia, and other relevant authorities) be able to go about their duties with some peace of mind?

In fact, who would want to be a regulator, to serve without fear and favour, if their safety is not assured? This could also undermine the efforts to rebuild public and investor confidence by the new Malaysia government.

The Police, Bursa Malaysia and other relevant authorities must get to the bottom of the matter and put those responsible behind bars. The authorities must realise that the incident wasn't simply an assault on an individual, it was an attack against the rule of law, the financial system, the regulators and market players.

This type of behaviour simply cannot be tolerated if the authorities are serious about upholding the law and cultivating good corporate governance in Malaysia.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.