Brunei Mosques Wage War Against Graft And Bribery
By Azlan Othman

Bandar Seri Begawan - In a special Friday sermon yesterday, Imams laid particular emphasis on the evils of bribery and corruption.

Whether it is cash, prizes, loans, wages, remuneration, deposits, property, positions, contracts, employment, services, payment or any valuable returns such as a special discount, commission, reduction or bonus, bribes should be abhorred, they said.

Bribery, which the Imams termed as the dishonest acceptance or offer as an inducement or remuneration for doing an act, in Brunei, under Section 6 (a), (b) and (c) of the Anti Corruption Act, is punishable with a fine of up to B$30,000 and a jail term of up to seven years.

In addition, the court will ask the recipient of the graft to pay back the sum (or value) equivalent to the amount that he received.

It is mandatory for civil servants to report to the Bureau matters relating to the acceptance, offer or promise of graft.

If they fail to do without an appropriate reason, they can be fined up to $500 or imprisoned for six months or both.

If they give false statements, the offender will be fined $20,000 and imprisoned for one year. The same penalty also applies to those who fail to give assistance or prevent an Anti-Corruption officer from carrying out an investigation.

The Imams gave examples of bribery as a recruitment officer giving priority to immediate family members, colleagues and those offering inducement, thereby ignoring applicants who are more qualified and eligible to fill up a post.

Meanwhile if a person is entrusted to select tender quotas and he gives approval to those offering bribes and ignores those qualified, this is also considered an act of bribery.

The Imams went on to say, “While we are carrying out our duties, being trustworthy is very important, without which we could end up swindling, accepting or giving bribed and other activities against the teachings of Islam.

The definition of bribery is vast and not only confined to money matters, but also includes the abuse of power.”

Imams also highlighted that bribery is not new, and Allah forbids mankind from taking and accepting bribes as it could prevent a person from telling the truth and fighting against the enemy. Instead with bribery, facts are turned into lies and a trusted person can betray you. Allah curses those offering and accepting bribes.

Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) himself was once offered several advantages by non-Muslims to halt his Islamic teachings and propagation efforts, Prophet Muhammad made a firm stand and rejected the offer, continuing to propagate such teachings for Allah.

The Imams also said that Islam forbids its Ummah from taking non-Halal food and sinful earnings like bribes. Those who commit bribery and get their bread and butter from bribery will receive heavy punishment in hell. Those who received unlawful and non-Halal earnings will not have their prayers and good deeds received by Allah for 40 days.

The general terms used for bribes among Malays include ‘makan suap’, ‘duit kopi’, ‘sogokan’, ‘wang bawah meja’, ‘tumbuk rusuk’, ‘wang pelincir’, ‘selesai luar’, ‘jalan pendek’ and ‘boleh runding’. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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