PETALING JAYA: Former minister Khairy Jamaluddin today said that wrongdoing must never be defended, even if it involves leaders of his party, Umno.
Khairy said political loyalty should not come before integrity, stressing that allegations of wrongdoing and mismanagement must be addressed.
"We shouldn't be afraid of talking about corruption, even if it involves our leaders. We should not be afraid to talk about it.
"What is wrong is wrong. What you cannot defend, don't defend. Mismanagement is mismanagement. If there is a case, we have to answer for it, and never compromise when it comes to integrity," he said.
Khairy was speaking in a panel session at the International Young Future Leaders Summit at the World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur. The other two panellists were Selangor menteri besar Amirudin Shari and Johor menteri besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi.
Khairy was responding to a student who raised concerns about corruption and public donations and support for former prime minister Najib Razak.
Onn Hafiz described corruption as a cancer that undermines progress, but warned against selective prosecution and said recent developments amounted to political persecution. He did not specify which cases these were.
"I think it is a cancer and has a serious negative impact when it comes to progress. If you want to prosecute anyone, you must be fair and apply the law regardless of political party.
"In my opinion, what's been happening the past few months is political persecution. And I think that is not fair," he said, adding that no institution or government agency should be used or weaponised for political benefit.
Amirudin, meanwhile, said young Malaysians' continued concern about corruption was encouraging, noting that it had been a major political issue since the 1990s and continued to influence public sentiment.
"It is still a major concern among Malaysians, particularly young leaders. I am very pleased, and I believe this is a good sign," he said.