Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1698746852373.pdf (Namibia)
REPUBLIC OF NAMIBIA NATIONAL ASSEMBLY VOTE 30 ANTI-CORRUPTION COMMISSION BUDGET MOTIVATION SPEECH 2018/19 FINANCIAL YEAR BY HON.

DR. SAMUEL CHIEF ANKAMA DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER 10 APRIL 2018 Budget Motivation Speech - Vote 30 for 2018/19: Anti-Corruption Commission Page 1 of 10 Honourable Chairperson of the Whole House Committee, Honourable Members of the National Assembly, 1.
I stand before you to present the budget proposal for Vote 30, Anti- Corruption Commission for the financial year 2018/2019.

2.

Namibia has entered a critical period in the fight against corruption.

The nation is inundated with reports of corruption at central, regional and local authority levels as well as in the private sector.

Civil society organizations are also cited in corruption reports.

We are almost on a daily basis, fed with the media reports on corruption.
The cancer of corruption is developing and we must intensify our fight against it.

3.

We are at a critical point from where we need to introspect.

We are at a point from where we must sharpen our approach to fight corruption, lest we fail.

From this critical point, we have no option but to take corrective action.

It is only when Namibia is corrupt-free that we shall reap full dividends in terms of efficient and effective public service delivery and the enjoyment of economic fruits by all our citizens.
4.

Honourable Chairperson of the Whole House Committee, allow me to reflect on a few factors that significantly contribute to reducing corruption.

Later on, in the presentation of the planned activities for the 2018/19 financial year, I shall indicate the specific approaches that the Commission will embark upon to sharpen the fight against corruption.

Budget Motivation Speech - Vote 30 for 2018/19: Anti-Corruption Commission Page 2oflO 5.
Corruption is an ancient evil and it occurs in all societies, rich or poor.

In the fight against it, there is no need to re-invent the wheel.

A tested recipe for fighting corruption can be found in the following critical elements: Ethical leadership (sometimes referred to as the will to fight corruption), strong democratic institutions, an independent judiciary, a robust civil society and a free press.

6.

Leadership that has the attributes of integrity and courage is key to fighting corruption.
Leaders at all levels are faced with moral and ethical dilemmas on a daily basis.

But a leader must have the internal compass that can guide him or her to know what is right and do what is right, no matter the temptations, other forces to the contrary or the consequences.

Secondly, we continuously need to strengthen our Parliament, the Ombudsman, the Office of the Attorney-General and the Anti-Corruption Commission.

These institutions must be fully capacitated to execute their roles.
Thirdly, we should continue to jealously protect the independence of our judiciary.

And lastly we must support civil society institutions and promote the independence of the press.

These are the basic ingredients of a successful anti-corruption coalition.

I shall, during the presentation of the budget plans return to specific actions that the Commission will embark upon to strengthen communication with the public and collaboration amongst agencies that are critical in the fight against corruption.
Budget Motivation Speech - Vote 30 for 2018/19: Anti-Corruption Commission Page 3 of 10 7.

Before reflecting on the Budget Proposal for Vote 30, it is necessary to refer to the major achievements during the financial year 2017/18.

8.

In respect of the Medium Term Plan 2017/18 - 2019/20, Vote 30 reflected three programmes, namely- • Investigation of allegations of corruption • Corruption prevention • Co-ordination, management and support 9.
The initial allocation for the financial year 2017/18 was N$59,375,000.

This amount was however reduced during the Mid-term Budget Review to N$59,168,000.

10.

The above resources were utilized in the investigative work, the delivery of anti-corruption messages to the public and in efforts to prevent or curb corruption.

11.

With regard to investigative work, the Commission had towards the middle of March 2018 managed to deal with 325 cases of which - a.
62 were finalized and referred to the Prosecutor-General with a recommendation that criminal prosecution be instituted; b.

31 cases, after preliminary investigations were conducted, in terms of section 3(c) read with section 18(3) of the Anti-Corruption Act, 2003, and were referred to other institutions for further handling; c. 20 cases, after investigations were conducted, closed as the allegations were either unfounded or could not be substantiated.
Budget Motivation Speech - Vote 30 for 2018/19: Anti-Corruption Commission Page 4 of 10 With regard to the other cases some are pending in court or are being subjected to further investigation.

12.

In the area of public education and corruption prevention, the Commission achieved the following: a. Operationalization of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy and Action Plan.

(Both the coordination and monitoring mechanisms for the strategy and action plan are in place); b.
The distribution and dissemination of anti-corruption publications and messages to the Commission's various stakeholders at anti- corruption seminars, industrial shows, trade and career fairs.
c. The carrying out of assessments at selected public institutions to establish the corruption vulnerability of the institutions and the subsequent compilation of integrity management reports containing recommendations with regard to mitigating strategies to be implemented, inclusive of the establishment of integrity committees, to effectively prevent corruption.

13.

The proposed allocation to Vote 30 for the 2018/19 financial year is SIXTY MILLION NINE HUNDRED AND FIFTY FIVE THOUSAND NAMIBIA DOLLARS.
This represents a 3% increase over the N$59, 168,000 allocated in the previous financial year.

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The allocation is to be divided among the three programmes as follows: • Programme 1: Investigation of allegations of corruption, an amount of TWENTY FOUR MILLION AND THIRTY THOUSAND NAMIBIA DOLLARS, is to be allocated; • Programme 2: Corruption prevention, an amount of THIRTEEN MILLION SIX HUNDRED AND EIGHT THOUSAND NAMIBIA DOLLARS is to be allocated; • Programme 3: Coordination management and support, an amount of TWENTY THREE MILLION AND THREE HUNDRED AND SEVENTEEN THOUSAND NAMIBIA DOLLARS is to be allocated.
15.
With regard to Programme 1, dealing with the investigation of allegations of corruption, the allocation of Twenty Four Million and Thirty Thousand Namibia Dollars will enable the Commission to - (a) Establish a forensic unit consisting of five investigating officers dedicated to acquire, filter and analyze data from electronic devices; (b) Engage experts in specialized fields to assist with the investigations of specialized cases (the above initiatives are a response to the perception that serious and complex corruption cases are not adequately addressed); Budget Motivation Speech - Vote 30 for 2018/19: Anti-Corruption Commission Page 6of10 (c) (e) Invest in modern software analysis programmes; Train Investigating Officers on modern investigative techniques.
16.

In response to a phenomenal increase in the number of serious or complex corruption cases and society's consistent call for high profile cases to be investigated promptly, the Commission will prioritize large corruption cases.

These are corruption cases that have the potential to undermine the country's commercial and financial interest, cases with huge potential financial loss to the country and cases where there is a significant public interest element.
This approach will go a long way in addressing society's perception that high profile cases are not attended to promptly or at all.

17.

Large and complex corruption cases unlike most other corruption investigations, contain a financial aspect that requires collection, extraction and analysis of data to find supporting circumstantial evidence or to show the relationships between the different entities/individuals involved.
The Commission currently has 15 investigations with estimated monetary value ranging between N$5 million and N$101 million.

These investigations require substantial resources that include a variety of investigative skills ranging from financial analysis, expertise in information technology and expert knowledge of the built environment among others.

The Commission will increasingly resort to sourcing of expertise to assist in the investigation of complex corruption cases.
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These complex investigations further require a close collaboration between investigating officers and prosecutors from the initial stages of the investigation up to and including the prosecution of the matters in court.

During the 2018/19 financial year, we shall approach the Office of the Attorney-General with a view to agreeing on a collaborative effort with prosecutors in tackling complex corruption cases.
This approach has the potential to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of investigations.

19.
The allocation of Thirteen Million Six Hundred and Eight Thousand Namibia Dollars will allow programme 2, dealing with public education and corruption prevention to; (a) Effectively coordinate the work of the National Anti-Corruption Steering Committee; (b) Establish and operationalize Integrity Committees in all Offices/Ministries, Agencies and Regional and Local Authority Councils; (c) Publish public education and corruption prevention material; (d) Conduct Corruption Risk Assessment in Public and Private Institutions.
20.

In an effort to enlist public support and to enhance collaboration with stakeholders, the Commission will endeavour to change its corporate image through increased communication with the public and through making its internal processes transparent.

When people do not know how matters are dealt with or what matters are being or have been Budget Motivation Speech - Vote 30 for 2018/19: Anti-Corruption Commission Page 8ofl0 dealt with, they make their own conclusions.
In the implementation of the organizational communication strategy, the Commission will, through programme 2, publish information on its website on cases being investigated as well as provide status reports on cases.

21.
21.

The ACC has to be exemplary in transparency and accountability and shall as part of its outreach efforts encourage individuals and institutions to approach relevant oversight bodies eg, Ombudsman, Police or Parliament in instances where they are of the view that their complaints were not attended to fairly.

22.

The funds will further be utilized to strengthen corruption prevention efforts through coordination of the work of the National Anti- Corruption Steering Committee.
The work of the Steering Committee includes efforts to strengthen oversight institutions including Parliament and to work in a collaborative manner with the media and civil society to strengthen their role as key watchdogs over our democracy.

23.
The allocation of Twenty Three Million and Three Hundred and Seventeen Thousand Namibia Dollars to Programme 3, dealing with the coordination, management and support functions, will enable the Commission to - (a) Implement the Performance Management System with a view to improving the performance of staff members; Budget Motivation Speech - Vote 30 for 2018/19: Anti-Corruption Commission Page 90f10 (b) Increase and effectively develop the Commission's human resources capacity to ensure a workforce with improved productivity and service delivery; (c) Improve and manage the Commission's national and regional infrastructure including leased premises and leased vehicles to ensure accessible and enhanced services to the public; 24.
A cross-cutting project of the Commission is the review of the enabling legislation with a view to making the Commission's work more effective by eliminating loopholes through which perpetrators of corrupt acts continue to evade the judicial system.

The Commission will endeavour to have the proposed corruption legislation tabled in Parliament during the 2018/19 financial year.

25.
25.

Honourable Members, in view of the above motivation, I request this August House to approve the expenditure of SIXTY MILLION NINE HUNDRED AND FIFTY FIVE NAMIBIA DOLLARS as set out in the Schedule of the Appropriation Bill for 2018/19 in respect of the Anti- Corruption Commission.

I thank you.

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