KUALA LUMPUR: The practice of offering hush money or using small rewards to cover up wrongdoing may seem harmless, but it is in fact the root of corruption and can undermine future generations.
Kuala Lumpur Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) director Mohamad Zakkuan Talib said integrity must be nurtured from home and strengthened across all levels of society.
“Parents must instil honesty and trustworthiness from an early age. Don’t normalise giving ‘hush money’ to hide mistakes.
“Likewise, paying for ‘cables’ (connections) must stop. That’s where corruption begins, often unnoticed,” he said, Bernama reported.
Speaking to reporters after the Desa Bebas Rasuah 2025 programme in Kampung Malaysia Raya yesterday, he said corruption rarely begins in boardrooms, but often with small actions that gradually become accepted behaviour.
“Corruption is like fire. It may seem small but left unchecked, it can burn homes, villages and entire nations. When students buy exam answers or village leaders show favouritism due to bribes, public trust begins to erode,” he said.
While the MACC could investigate and prosecute, he said true success depended on public support, with the community as the front line in building an integrity-driven generation.
Since taking office four months ago, Mohamad Zakkuan said public tip-offs had increased, driven by outreach efforts and greater awareness of whistle-blower rewards for information leading to convictions.
“Integrity starts with ‘I’. If civil servants, students and community leaders are clean, so too will be the nation,” he added.
