KUALA LUMPUR: The latest Transparency International (TI) Corruption Perception Index (CPI) did not reflect the various enforcement actions taken throughout 2017, said Malaysian Anti-Corrup­tion Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Tan Sri Dzulkifli Ahmad.

Dzulkifli said he was shocked to find Malaysia had gone down seven places in the overall ranking of 180 countries to the 62nd spot.

“There has been enforcement action taken almost every week and some continuous and visible arrests throughout last year.

“We have taken aggressive efforts to combat corruption, but it (CPI) still does not reflect all our work.

“If it is based on the reality in the country, we should be at a better position compared to 2016,” he told a press conference at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Academy here.

The CPI ranks countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption according to experts and business people.

It uses a scale of 0 to 100, where 0 is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean. Malaysia scored 47 out of 100 points last year.

In 2016, Malaysia ranked 55 among 176 countries, with a score of 49 out of 100, while in 2015, Malaysia was ranked 54 out of 168 countries, with a score of 50.

Dzulkifli said he would study the report further to improve Malaysia’s standing.

“We want to look at the breakdown of the survey to identify why our position dropped,” he said.

He also noted the CPI touched on other issues such as governance, politics, human rights and the efficiency of doing business, which are not under MACC’s purview.

Dzulkifli said the drop in ranking should be looked at in totality and not just about corruption.

He also ordered for a special committee to be established to look into findings and all relevant matters under the purview of the MACC.

He also proposed that the Government create its own index to look at the problem of corruption.

“It is timely to have our own index, not just based on perception, but what is happening on the ground objectively,” said Dzulkifli.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Paul Low said the MACC showed strong commitment to enforce anti-graft laws by making numerous arrests, including against high-profile individuals.

“The high degree of exposure given by the MACC to these cases, especially last year, may create a negative perception, which could contribute to the drop in Malaysia’s CPI score,” he said in a statement.

He said this should not deter the MACC from aggressive enforcement and the Government from making necessary long-term reforms.

During a press conference announcing the CPI results, TI-Malaysia president Datuk Akhbar Satar said Malaysia dropped two points because of issues surrounding several high-­profile cases.

This year, more than two-thirds of all countries scored below 50, with an average score of 43.

New Zealand was ranked highest with 89 points followed by Denmark with 88 points and Finland, Norway and Switzerland with 85 points.

In the Asean region, Malaysia ranked third behind Singapore, which had a score of 84; and Brunei, with a score of 62.

Bersih 2.0 chairman Maria Chin Abdullah said MACC should be given powers to prosecute as well as investigate corruption cases.

“Time and again, the MACC investigates cases of corruption but hits a dead end as the Attorney-General allows the files on his desk to collect dust,” she said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4) executive director Cynthia Gabriel said it was disturbed that Malaysia had plunged seven spots in the CPI.

She said C4 concurs that unresolved issues contributed to this and called for reforms.