KUALA LUMPUR, June 6 ― Prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad today said that the government would heighten its efforts to curb corruption, by stopping vote-buying.
“In our efforts to combat corruption, the people must be educated that the effort to curb corruption is not just the responsibility of the government, but also the people.
“Giving money in exchange for support from the people is also one form of corruption, and this needs to be stopped,” he said in a press conference after a Cabinet meeting in Putrajaya.
On May 11, two days after taking over the government, Dr Mahathir said that he will ask the Election Commission (EC) to hold fresh elections in seats where candidates are suspected to have paid cash for votes.
Alluding to Sabah, which was at the time facing a leadership crisis, the prime minister slammed the practice of money politics in exchange for votes, saying it was a violation of the people’s trust.
He also criticised the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), which he accused of turning a blind eye to money politics during the official election campaigning period from April 28 to May 8.
“When we find evidence that the person won through corruption, we will request that the election be invalidated. We are looking into the law on this,” he told a news conference at the Yayasan Al-Bukhary on May 11.
