July 31, 2026 | Burma Independent Voice
Coup leader Min Aung Hlaing, speaking on the 100th day of assuming the post of coup president, blamed the civilian NLD government, claiming that reckless actions and corruption by officials during its tenure led to massive financial losses for the country.
“During the term of the previous second democratic government, the state suffered losses amounting to $13.3 billion and over 226.1 billion Myanmar kyat due to the reckless actions and corruption of responsible officials,” the coup president stated in his speech.
Min Aung Hlaing frequently uses his speeches to criticize the elected civilian NLD administration. Furthermore, despite reports from domestic and international election monitoring organizations confirming that the 2020 general election was free, fair, and representative of the voters’ will, he continually justifies his military takeover by alleging electoral fraud.
In his 100-day address, the coup leader claimed that his administration would be a “clean government with good governance.” The phrase “clean government and good governance” was previously utilized in speeches by his senior predecessor, former President Thein Sein of the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP).
While the military chief accuses the NLD government of causing economic losses through corruption, the latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) report from Transparency International reveals that Myanmar scored only 16 points in 2025, ranking 169th out of 182 countries worldwide.
Under the civilian government in 2020, Myanmar had shown measurable progress in anti-corruption efforts, achieving a score of 28 (ranked 137th). However, following the military coup, the collapse of oversight and regulatory bodies caused corruption to deteriorate year after year, with scores dropping to 16 in both 2024 and 2025.
Within the Asia-Pacific region, Singapore ranked highest with a score of 84. In contrast, Myanmar remains among the world’s most corrupt nations alongside Afghanistan (score 16) and North Korea (score 15).
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