Someone wrote this on Malaysiakini

Stop rationalising corruption
HL Too
May 18, 06 3:49pm




I read with interest the letter entitled Culture and corruption by Noor Yahaya Hamzah. What I find a little surprising is that the writer wrote that ‘Part of the problem is when people can’t differentiate between gifts (sadaqa) and kickbacks or bribes’.

That is what I call the culture of corruption. The problem confronting the country is not corruption per se. The serious problem concerning corruption is when it becomes acceptable as a way of life.

Therefore, it is the acceptance of corruption rather than corruption itself that is the cancer that is destroying the moral fibre of the nation. When one cannot differentiate between gifts and bribes, then obviously that is what is known as the culture of corruption.

When a person tries to rationalise his/her actions, then that person obviously feels guilty. Saying that it is ‘peanuts’ is just a way of justifying dishonesty. How often have you heard people saying that what he has done pales in insignificance when compared to the wrongdoings of some one else.

Civil servants often claim that what they ‘makan’ is peanuts compared to what some big-shot politician has done.

Our children are also inducted into this culture of corruption when they come of age. When our children becomes old enough to qualify for a driving license, they often learn that their parents' moral compass is a little defective.

How many parents pay ‘coffee money’ so that their children can pass their driving tests. How do you justify that? If you do not pay, you do not pass. I have heard my friends say that it is so inconvenient having to take the driving tests several times. "Aiyah, just pay them once and get it over with lah!".

How often have we heard people claim that ‘this is life’ or ‘this is the real world’? The sooner Malaysians stop justifying or rationalising their corrupt practices and acknowledge that we already have a culture of corruption, the faster we can acknowledge the need to clean up this country of this scourge.

Don't rely upon our political leaders. There is enough evidence that their moral compasses have been broken a long time ago.