I agree with what you say but, as you pointed out, "after some time" is the operating keyword. I think many non-citizens would likely not spend enough time to run into the corruption problem, and even for citizens like myself, it is possible to avoid being a part of the system directly to a large extent (being indirectly a party to, or a sufferer of, corruption is an entirely different matter, however).

But yes, when they say anything is possible in SE Asia, that's probably a hint that laws that are "on the books" can be circumvented..