The report by Berlin-based Transparency International surveyed more than 20,000 people in 16 countries spanning the Asia Pacific region from Pakistan to Australia. From the results they estimated 900 million people were forced to fork over “tea money” at least once in the previous 12 months. “Governments must do more to deliver on their anti-corruption commitments,” Jose Ugaz, the chair of Transparency International, said in a press release. Corruption scandals have rocked a number of governments in Asia over the past year, dominating news headlines and whipping up protests. Malaysia has also been seized by a graft scandal since 2015, with global investigators accusing Premier Najib Razak and his associates of misappropriating billions of dollars through the state-backed 1MDB fund.

Source: Sunday Times March 07, 2017 10:10 UTC