By SIM PEI XUAN
SUBANG JAYA: Student debaters speaking against political bribery took home the first prize for the Youth Speak Up Debate on Integrity and Corruption at Taylor’s University recently.
The opposition team, which consisted of three leading student debaters from different universities, argued that it is not legitimate for progressive voters to bribe politicians to ensure some changes.
Deputy Prime Minister of the opposition, Behrad Taadoli, 21, said, “A bribed politician will never fight for progression, as there is an expectation of payment for him to do his job.”
Elaborating on his viewpoint, the debater from Asia Pacific University said benefits promised by corrupt politicians are unreliable, as it is possible for them to get more bribes from parties acting against the interest of the people.
Also representing the opposition were Taylor’s University Diploma in Education student Felice Wong Jing-Yi, 20, and International Islamic University Malaysia student Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, 23.
Syed Saddiq, who was awarded Best Speaker, said, “With money as a determinant of political work, people who are unfortunately poor and already
under-represented will then be further disenfranchised in a world which is full of corruption.”
While the government team insisted that bribery is a moral choice for progression in a context where all means have been exhausted, the opposition rebutted that social movement is the best line of defense that progressive voters should fight for in the long term.
Aimed to raise awareness and initiate open dialogue on the issue of corruption, the debate was organised by Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) in collaboration with the Malaysian Institute of Debate and Public Speaking.
“Based on a survey, 30.5 percent of university students in Malaysia would get involved in corruption if given the chance,” TI-M President Dato’ Akhbar Satar said, urging students to influence their peers in combating corruption.
However, both teams of the debate reinforced that the arguments provided did not represent their personal sentiments towards the issue.
Kelviin Manuel Pillay, 20, who spoke on behalf of the government said, “Generally bribery is not a democratic idea that I stand for, but I am not all out in the opposition side either; I think bribing your way to make progressive changes is an interesting idea, but I don’t think it works.”
The opposition team, which consisted of three leading student debaters from different universities, argued that it is not legitimate for progressive voters to bribe politicians to ensure some changes.
Deputy Prime Minister of the opposition, Behrad Taadoli, 21, said, “A bribed politician will never fight for progression, as there is an expectation of payment for him to do his job.”
Elaborating on his viewpoint, the debater from Asia Pacific University said benefits promised by corrupt politicians are unreliable, as it is possible for them to get more bribes from parties acting against the interest of the people.
Also representing the opposition were Taylor’s University Diploma in Education student Felice Wong Jing-Yi, 20, and International Islamic University Malaysia student Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, 23.
Syed Saddiq, who was awarded Best Speaker, said, “With money as a determinant of political work, people who are unfortunately poor and already
under-represented will then be further disenfranchised in a world which is full of corruption.”
While the government team insisted that bribery is a moral choice for progression in a context where all means have been exhausted, the opposition rebutted that social movement is the best line of defense that progressive voters should fight for in the long term.
Aimed to raise awareness and initiate open dialogue on the issue of corruption, the debate was organised by Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) in collaboration with the Malaysian Institute of Debate and Public Speaking.
“Based on a survey, 30.5 percent of university students in Malaysia would get involved in corruption if given the chance,” TI-M President Dato’ Akhbar Satar said, urging students to influence their peers in combating corruption.
However, both teams of the debate reinforced that the arguments provided did not represent their personal sentiments towards the issue.
Kelviin Manuel Pillay, 20, who spoke on behalf of the government said, “Generally bribery is not a democratic idea that I stand for, but I am not all out in the opposition side either; I think bribing your way to make progressive changes is an interesting idea, but I don’t think it works.”