KUALA LUMPUR: Top Glove Corp Bhd and DiGi.Com Bhd are among four companies that have joined the newly set up business integrity alliance (BIA), which brings together companies committed to doing business with integrity.
The other two companies in the alliance are privately held Trident Integrity Solutions Sdn Bhd and Thumbprints United Sdn Bhd.
BIA secretary-general Dr Mark Lovatt, who is also chief executive officer of Trident, said the alliance targets to have 20 member companies by the end of next year.
“We expect this to start as a fairly small group of committed companies. We won’t be looking to work with any and every company, [as] we are interested in quality above quantity because we want to support those companies who take business integrity seriously,” he told reporters at a news conference in conjunction with the launch of the BIA yesterday.
He added that the exposure of companies in Malaysia to prosecution risk and reputational risk is increasing.
“Prosecution risk is for companies that come under the UK Bribery Act, but reputational risk is a big problem now ... so if you’re a Malaysian company and you are looking to grow, and you get caught in a corruption scandal, it will impact [your] ability to raise capital [and so forth].
“So, what we do is helping companies mitigate these risks by best practice, explaining how they can do things differently, and getting the problem solved at source,” said Lovatt.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Paul Low said he would assist in getting more government-linked companies to join the alliance.
“[Public-listed companies] should also be interested [in the BIA],” said Low.
Meanwhile, Top Glove managing director K M Lee said the glove-maker is a strong supporter of business ethics.
“We would like our business community to know [about the BIA], and we will certainly like it to be included in our next annual report in our statement on corporate governance.
“Over time, we would like to have a direct link on our website to the [BIA website], so that our customers all over the world will pay attention to this area,” he said.
DiGi general counsel Ola Hanson said the telecommunications group had no tolerance for corruption or any unethical conduct as transparent business practices are crucial to its business.
“By sharing the same commitment to have a high standard of integrity, I am certain that we will not only continue to drive a successful business environment but also secure the trust and respect of our respective stakeholders and customers,” he said.
On a separate note, Low said the amendment to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC)Anti-Corruption Act 2009, which includes a section on corporate liability, will be passed in March next year.
“[The amendment] is to ensure that if an employee of a company is involved in bribery, the company will be found guilty unless the company proves that it has adequate procedures to prevent the bribery.
“Multiple fines will be slapped on companies [which violate the act],” he said.