Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1698925997245.pdf (Namibia)
1 NATIONAL ASSEMBLY MOTIVATION OF APPROPRIATION VOTE 30 - ANTI-CORRUPTION COMMISSION Budget Motivation Speech 2017/18 Financial Year by HONOURABLE CHRISTINE / /HOEBES, DEPUTY MINISTER, OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER Honourable Chairperson of the Whole House Committee, Honourable Members of the National Assembly, 1.

I have the privilege to present the budget proposal for Vote 30, Anti-Corruption Commission for the financial year 2017/2018.

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The fight against corruption is at the core of our efforts to improve governance.

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.

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The Anti-Corruption Commission was established to prevent and control corruption.

As corruption permeates all layers of society and is difficult to detect, however the fight against it cannot be won by one institution.
Corruption is a societal problem and it requires all institutions in society to be active participants.

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Namibia continues to be rated favourably on governance and institutional issues by a number of international agencies.

We however could do better and have set ourselves targets to reach in the medium term.

The Harambee Prosperity Plan targets improvement from position 4 to position 1 in Africa on Transparency International's measure of perceived levels of public sector corruption.

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Before I present the details of the budget proposal for the financial year 2017/18, I would first like to reflect on key achievements during the financial year 2016/17.

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In respect of the Medium Term Plan 2016/17 - 2018/19, Vote 30 reflected three programmes, namely - • • • Investigation of allegations of corruption Corruption prevention Co-ordination, management and support 7.The initial allocation for the financial year 2016/17 was N$49,860,000 but was Reduced during the Mid - term Budget Review to N$ 48,080,000 8.
The above resources were utilized in the Commissions' investigative work, the delivery of anti-corruption messages to the public and in efforts to prevent or curb corruption.

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With regard to investigative work, the Commission by middle March 2017 managed to deal with 400 cases of which- 3 • in 49 cases the investigations were finalized and referred to the Prosecutor- General with a recommendation that criminal prosecution be instituted; • in 18 cases after preliminary investigations were conducted, the cases were in terms of section 3(c) read with section 18(3) of the Anti-Corruption Act, 2003 referred to other institutions for further handling; • in 333 cases after investigations were conducted, the cases were closed as the allegations were either unfounded or could not be substantiated.
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The above cases were extensively investigated, inclusive of forensic analysis in most instances, before a decision was arrived at to either close or refer to other authorities or make a recommendation to the Prosecutor-General.

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Referrals to other institutions would include recommendations with regard to appropriate action to be taken, amongst others, under the applicable legislation administered by the relevant institutions.

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In the area of public education and corruption prevention, the Commission achieved the following: • Selection of two of the Commission's officials and one official from the Ministry of Justice to form the Namibian team who together with an Australian delegation conducted a country review of Lichtenstein in AustriaO to establish the extent of the country's compliance with the United Nations Convention Against Corruption; • the finalisation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy and Action Plan and the subsequent submission to, and approval thereof by Cabinet; 4 • the successful launching of the National Anti-Corruption Steering Committee and convening of an induction workshop and first meeting for the members thereof; • • the establishment of a secretariat to coordinate the implementation of the Action Plan under the Strategy; the further training of Life Skills Teachers of the Ministry of Education on the Anti-Corruption Manual to ensure the successful integration of the topics contained therein into the Life Skills Curriculum; • the distribution and dissemination of anti-corruption publications and messages to the Commission's various stakeholders at anti-corruption seminars, trade fairs, industrial shows and career fairs.
In addition, as part of the Commission's public educational outreach activities, the youth and community members were engaged in projects such the development of posters and other artwork containing anti-corruption messages; • 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.
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The allocation ofN$48 million for the 2016/17 financial year to fulfill its mandate, was inadequate when one compares it to the following needs on the ground: • The Commission is expected to investigate complex corruption cases.

In this regard it is of utmost importance to from time to time to acquire the latest technological tools and devices needed to carry out forensic analysis.
Investigators also need to be trained on the usage of such tools and 5 devices as well as on the latest investigative techniques.

Substantial resources are required for such acquisition and training.

• The software of the Case Management System of the Commission, on which all investigation data are captured, also needs to be continuously updated and maintained.

It is critical, but also a costly affair to provide for the software updates and maintenance.

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The above factors seriously hamper productivity and optimal service delivery to the public and, if not addressed timeously, have the potential to erode public confidence in the Commission.

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The Anti-Corruption Commission continues to value Government support in the national effort to fight the scourge of corruption.
Adequate funding is needed though, in particular, to continue increasing and developing the Commission's human resources capacity, which will enable the Commission to effectively and efficiently combat corruption.

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The proposed allocation for the 2017 / 18 financial year is FIFTY NINE MILLION THREE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY FIVE THOUSAND NAMIBIA DOLLARS.

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The allocation is to be divided among the three programmes as follows: • Investigation of allegations of corruption • Corruption prevention • Coordination, management and support In respect of- 6 • Programe 1: Investigation of allegations of corruption, an amount of TWENTY TWO MILLION FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND NAMIBIA DOLLARS is to be allocated; • Programme 2: Corruption prevention, an amount of FOURTEEN MILLION EIGHT HUNDRED AND SEVENTY SEVEN THOUSAND NAMIBIA DOLLARS is to be allocated; • Programme 3: Coordination management and support, an amount TWENTY ONE MILLION NINE HUNDRED AND NINETY EIGHT THOUSAND NAMIBIA DOLLARS is to be allocated.
If allocated, the amounts would - ~ with regard to Programme 1, dealing with the investigation of allegations of corruption, enable the Commission to - • capacitate its investigators to successfully conduct and conclude investigations into alleged corrupt practices; • invest in modern software analysis programmes; • maintain the ACC's Case Management System, which controls and monitors investigative work; ~ with regard to Programme 2, dealing with corruption prevention, enable the Commission to - • effectively coordinate the work of the National Anti-Corruption Steering Committee; • conduct Corruption Risk Assessments in Public and Private Institutions; ~ with regard to Programme 3, dealing with the coordination, management and support functions, enable the Commission to - 7 • fully implement the Performance Management System with a view to improving the performance of staff members; • increase and effectively develop the Commission's human resources capacity to ensure a workforce with improved productivity and service delivery; • ensure through the execution of regular internal audits, proper financial management, transparency and improved accountability; • improve and manage its national and regional infrastructure to ensure accessible and enhanced services to the public; • secure a high level of customer satisfaction through improved communication mechanisms; • better regulate the activities of the Commission through improved legislative and institutional frameworks changes.
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As part of the implementation of the above three programmes, the Commission will be reviewing its enabling legislation with a view to making its work more effective by eliminating loopholes through which perpetrators of corrupt acts continue to evade the justice system.

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Honourable Members, in view of the above motivation, I request this August House to approve the expenditure of FIFTY NINE MILLION THREE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY FIVE THOUSAND NAMIBIA DOLLARS as set out in the Schedule of the Appropriation Bill for 2017 in respect of the Anti- Corruption Commission.

I thank you.