Now it’s Audit Department’s turn to be neutered 

Husband of new auditor-general once said he’ll ‘die for Najib’

Slumdog: The appointment of Madinah Mohamad as auditor-general unfortunately does not instil public confidence, especially given her ability, skill, knowledge and seemingly lack of independence. This is the final nail in the coffin for public administration and governance in Malaysia.

In the past few years, PM Najib Razak has under cover of darkness neutered the civil service, Attorney-General’s Chambers, the judiciary, Bank Negara, the police, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, the Election Commission, the Public Accounts Committee and now finally, the Auditor-General’s Department.

This is what happens when one man commands absolute power and nobody is prepared to challenge him or speak out.

Anonymous 2436471476414726: One would have thought that for a key appointment such as this, Madinah would at least have an outstanding background and past career in auditing and/or accounting plus unblemished integrity.

In the light of the global financial scandal surrounding Najib, it would be magnanimous of him to appoint someone with such experience.

Otherwise, the rakyat are tempted to think that he is purposely appointing those willing to do his bidding, no matter how unlawful.

Thickskin: I suppose the first order of business for the new auditor-general is to rescind the previous 1MDB audit report and declare that 1MDB is as clean as a whistle.

SelangorKu: I have met and spoken to auditor-generals of several Commonwealth countries and all agreed that politicians don’t want a non-accountant to be auditor-general for obvious reasons – they are not trained to uncover corruption.

The Observer: It looks like anyone, including a kindergarten teacher, can now become the auditor-general.

DontPlayGod: The Audit Department has been a pain for the BN for decades, bringing to light the many abuse of funds and rampant corruption, and all of these have been left without any further investigation or action taken.

Things will now change for the better for the ruling party.

Pretzel Dog: According to President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, political science graduates make excellent auditor-generals and I have no reason to doubt him.

RR: In a parliamentary democracy, the appointment of crucial national positions like attorney-general, inspector-general of police, Election Commission chairperson and Army chief should be selected by a parliamentary select committee which should include opposition members with the chairperson from the opposition bench.

Oscar Kilo: Madinah is appointed as auditor-general precisely because of her links to Umno. Isn’t that clear enough?

We can kiss goodbye to the investigation on 1MDB. That is, unless the next PM reopens investigations 20 years later.

DAP MP: Don’t judge Madinah because of husband’s loyalty to Najib

Telestai!: Kepong MP Tan Seng Giaw’s defence of Madinah is ridiculous.

The auditor-general is tasked with doing independent audits and ensuring honesty, transparency and accountability in the government, and the appointee cannot be anyone who has little or no experience in auditing public accounts nor someone whose integrity or independence is questionable.

Tan seems to think that any Tom, Dick and Harry is qualified to be the auditor-general. Despite being a leading figure in the opposition whom the rakyat is relying on to keep the government honest, he is increasingly standing out as an apologist for Umno.

Dingy: Indeed, as auditor-general, she must have good accounting knowledge otherwise she will solely depend on her subordinates’ views. The minimum qualification should be a degree in economics.

We have seen Mohamed Apandi Ali as attorney-general and Khalid Abu Bakar as IGP. Did they act independently to carry out their duties?

Ipohcrite: Relatively speaking, I don’t think Madinah can do any worse as auditor-general than Najib as prime minister and finance minister.

But then, are we so bereft of talent that we need to appoint someone who has no auditing experience to be the auditor-general?

C4 questions Madinah’s qualifications as auditor-general

Clever Voter: Past ethical performance of state agencies has been below expectations. It doesn’t look as if the public sector wants a more technically sound person who can fulfil the role of auditor-general.

But more important, the public is not convinced the person has what it takes to be bold, courageous, impartial and independent.

And the Najib administration could not be bothered. They have confidence in remaining in power.

Anonymous #13291217: Shame on you C4. The Lord Chancellor Elizabeth Truss is neither a lord nor a lawyer. Nor was her predecessor Michael Gove a lawyer.

Former auditor-general Ambrin Buang had no auditing or accounting qualifications and was a PTD (Pegawai Tadbir dan Diplomatik) like Madinah.

At least, Madinah started her career looking after the budget and finances of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Not Convinced: But then again, Ambrin has degrees in economics and business (and not political science and human resources).

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