(Kuala Lumpur, 9th) Federation of Chinese Associations Malaysia (Huazong) President Dato’ Lin Jiaquan has suggested that the government emulate neighboring Singapore by amending the law to impose caning on scammers, using harsh legal penalties to curb the country’s increasingly rampant scams!
Lin Jiaquan stated that as scam syndicates become ever more sophisticated, Malaysia’s law enforcement intensity needs to rise in tandem; if punishments are too lenient, it won’t deter criminals and would only embolden them to continue their deceptions.
“While strengthening public education and anti-scam awareness, the government must also boldly pursue reform, reviewing whether existing penalties still meet society’s current needs. Scam syndicates must be severely punished; otherwise, we’ll forever be trapped in this ‘endless cycle of scams.’”
“Just last week, the Singaporean parliament amended the law to allow up to 12 strokes of the cane for scammers. I hope our government will consider following suit and impose heavier punishments on scammers, including caning!”
Nevertheless, Lin Jiaquan stressed that harsh punishment is not about revenge, but to deter scammers. Only by making would-be scammers ‘feel real pain’ can society’s safety be assured.
Lin Jiaquan made these remarks last night (8th) when delivering a speech at the 27th Anniversary Celebration and inauguration dinner of the new board of the Sungai Way Hokkien Association in Selangor.
He also cited police statistics showing that in the first nine months of this year, online scams have cost Malaysians losses of over RM2 billion, nearly a 94% surge compared to two years ago, with victims ranging from youths to even professionals.
“Now even civil servants, teachers, and doctors can fall victim, because scam tactics are ever more diversified and sophisticated—using technology, AI-generated voices, and even fake government websites to trick people. In the past, we used to say ‘greed makes one fall for scams,’ but today, ‘caution may still not be enough to avoid being scammed.’”
Lin Jiaquan hopes every Chinese and community association in the country can become a community education platform, so that ‘anti-scam’ awareness can be deeply rooted in every family.