COMMENT | Hawkers – victims of the crony system

COMMENT | Doing business in Malaysia has its own set of peculiarities, sensitivities, creativity and the occasional idiosyncrasies.

Ever since the "Ali Baba" system started with the introduction of the affirmative policies in 1972, this has been modified, revised, amended and adapted to accommodate the needs of the situation and its surroundings.

Depending on the quantum and portability, the system is worked on by insiders or personalities in almost all levels of government – from the office boy in the hawker management office to the highest echelons of government.

You don’t have to look far. The evidence adduced in ongoing court cases speaks for themselves. Businessmen are will to part with millions to people at the highest level without batting an eye – the higher the level, the better the chances of landing the job.

At the highest level, one businessman allegedly tackled the wife of the former numero uno in an attempt to get the contract. For him expanding or “investing” (as some see it) large sums of money on individuals who wield power through their office or via pillow talk provides a return on his investments.

Who would have thought of this philosophy - to get close to the minister, you must first get close to those who are close to this person. Investigating a corruption case about 10 years ago, the businessman who was soliciting for a massive contract explained (with a straight face) why he paid for the business class return airfare to Hawaii for the minister’s personal fitness trainer.

Elsewhere, a state executive councillor animatedly elucidated why he had set up an ad-hoc committee comprising his cronies to handle allocation for Chinese New Year stalls. When it was left to the council, he reasoned, it would be a difficult process. So, the committee would collect a processing fee after which everything would be arranged.

Then there’s a thing called "persatuan" (association) which collects fixed fees from traders as "yuran pengurusan" (management fee)...