By Brad Rantayy
MIRI, Dec 13: Tired of being perceived by the public as a corrupt department, Sarawak Forest Department will rope in the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to help draw up an effective mechanism to curb corruption.
Its director, Hamden Mohammad, said to ensure the success of this initiative, the department would “make sure that every ‘door’ (for graft opportunities) is ‘closed’.
Hamden said this to reporters after witnessing the signing of a corruption-free pledge (IBR) by his staff from the northern region of the state. Also present was state MACC deputy director Abdul Razak Deraof.
“In conjunction with our 100th anniversary celebration on Jan 1 next year, we want to rebuild and revamp in order to change the department’s image. We want to get rid of the public’s perception that always associates us with corruption,” said Hamden.
Some 100 of the department’s personnel from Miri, Bintulu, Limbang and Lawas were at the gathering.
The signed IBR was later handed over by the department’s head in Miri, Alexander Anthony Banyan, to Abdul Razak Deraof in the presence of Hamden.
Also present were Sarawak Forest Department deputy director Jack Liam and the department’s senior forest assistant director Abdul Wahab Ahmad. — DayakDaily
