Against Corruption
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Impartially Integrity In e dependenc FIJI INDEPENDENT COMMISSION AGAINST CORRUPTION HOW TO CONTACT FICAC Suva Fiji Bank Employees Union Building (FBEU) Labasa Macuata Tikina Holdings Building Corner Kimberley & Gordon Street Siberia Road PO Box 2335, Government Buildings PO Box 9 Suva Labasa Telephone: (679) 3310290/3310291 Telephone: (679) 8816793 Fax: (679) 3310297 Fax: (679) 8816792 Email: [email protected] Website: www.ficac.org.fj Business hours: 8am – 4.30pm Monday to Thursday 8am – 4pm Friday HOW TO CONTACT FICAC Suva Fiji Bank Employees Union Building (FBEU) Labasa Macuata Tikina Holdings Building Corner Kimberley & Gordon Street Siberia Road PO Box 2335, Government Buildings PO Box 9 Suva Labasa Telephone: (679) 3310290/3310291 Telephone: (679) 8816793 Fax: (679) 3310297 Fax: (679) 8816792 Email: [email protected] Website: www.ficac.org.fj Business hours: 8am – 4.30pm Monday to Thursday 8am – 4pm Friday 2008 Annual Report Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption Submitted to His Excellency, the President of the Republic of the Fiji Islands in accordance with Section 17 of the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption Promulgation No. 11 of 2007 1 2 Impartially Integrity In e depen denc FIJI INDEPENDENT COMMISSION AGAINST CORRUPTION OUR VISION FICAC will investigate and prosecute corruption and bribery cases in order to eradicate white collar crimes OUR MISSION FICAC is committed to effectively combating corruption in order to promote transparency and accountability for the attainment of zero tolerance of corruption, set the foundation for good governance and create sustainable development for the benefit of all citizens of Fiji OUR VALUES ¾ Independence ¾ Professionalism ¾ Integrity ¾ Commitment ¾ Impartiality 2 3 4 CONTENTS Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 5: Legal Promulgation 8 Functions 28 Organisation 8 Cases 29 Responsibilities of the Commissioner 9 Chapter 2: Deputy Commissioner’s Chapter 6: Registry & Customer Message Service Overview 12 Functions 32 FICAC Committees 13 Complaints for 2008 33 Appreciation 13 Chapter 3: Administration Chapter 7: Public Affairs/Education & Training Functions 18 Functions 36 General Administration 18 Highlights for 2008 36 Personnel Administration 19 Training & Development of Officers 19 FICAC Buildings 20 Commendations 20 Chapter 4: Investigations Chapter 8: Finance Establishment 22 Financial Statements for 2008 44 Responsibility and Power 22 Prosecution of Cases 22 Statistics on Investigations 23 Staff Discipline 25 Appendices Information Technology 25 Organisation Structure FICAC Cases Financial Statements 5 6 Information Technology Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 7 4 INTRODUCTION PROMULGATION The Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (‘FICAC’) derives its charter from the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption Promulgation No. 11 of 2007 (FICAC Promulgation). Although FICAC is only subject to the orders and control of the President under Section 5(1) of the FICAC Promulgation, its daily operations and employment of officers fall under the responsibility of the Commissioner and/or Deputy Commissioner. Accordingly, FICAC is independent in that its investigations are not subject to the direction of any political party or government of the day. This independence is essential for the public to have confidence in FICAC’s ability to deal with, investigate and prosecute matters pertaining to corruption and bribery. ORGANISATION The organisation comprises of the Office of the Deputy Commissioner and five (5) functional departments, namely: x Administration; x Investigations; x Legal; x Registry & Customer Service; and, x Finance The Office of the Deputy Commissioner include the following: x Planning & Development; and, x Public Affairs and Education & Training 8 FICAC’s organisation structure is shown in Appendix 1. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE COMMISSIONER Under Section 12 of the FICAC Promulgation, the Commissioner, through the Deputy Commissioner and/or through his officers on behalf of the President shall: (a) receive and consider complaints alleging corrupt practices and investigate such of those complaints as the Commissioner considers practicable; (b) investigate: (i) any alleged or suspected occurrence of an offence specified in paragraphs (a) to (d) of section 2A; (ii) any alleged or suspected offence of conspiracy to commit any of the offences specified in paragraphs (a) to (d) of section 2A; and (iii) any alleged or suspected attempt to commit any of the offences specified in paragraphs (a) to (d) of section 2A, or any alleged or suspected offence of aiding, abetting, inciting, counseling or procuring any of those offences; (c) investigate any conduct of a prescribed officer which, in the opinion of the Commissioner is connected with or conducive to corrupt practices and to report thereon to the President; (d) examine the practices and procedures of Government departments and public bodies, in order to facilitate the discovery of corrupt practices and to secure the revision of methods of work or procedures which, in the opinion of the Commissioner, may be conducive to corrupt practices; (e) instruct, advise and assist any person, on the latter’s request, on ways in which corrupt practices may be eliminated by such person; 9 (f) advise heads of Government departments or of public bodies of changes in practices or procedures compatible with the effective discharge of the duties of such departments or public bodies which the Commissioner thinks necessary to reduce the likelihood of the occurrence of corrupt practices; (g) educate the public against the evils of corruption; and, (h) enlist and foster public support in combating corruption. 10 Chapter 2 DEPUTY COMMISSIONER’S MESSAGE 11 8 DEPUTY COMMISSIONER’S MESSAGE OVERVIEW It has been another year full of activities for FICAC commencing with the legality of the organisation challenged in Court to the continuous charges being laid against public officials. Despite these challenges, I am proud to say the team at FICAC remained focused on its mandate. In our effort to bring us closer to the people, the Northern Office was further strengthened with additional staff. This enabled the Northern Office to effectively handle all investigations in the Northern Division. In 2009, we will expand our operation to the Western Division by setting up an office in Lautoka. With the three offices in key centres of Fiji, the request for FICAC services will now be accessible to members of the public. With the increasing number of complaints received coupled with the need to carry out investigations, additional staff were recruited. Some restructure to the organisation were carried out to facilitate the operational effectiveness of the organisation. Through the restructure, the workload was adequately shared and there was a marked improvement to the output of individual work. In 2008, we launched a number of initiatives as part of our capacity building. These include sourcing both legal and training consultants from overseas, engaging with schools, tertiary institution and the Public Service Commission Training Centre for anti-corruption training. These initiatives are in line with our mandate to educate the public on the evils of corruption. On the international front, we have continued to strengthen our engagement with the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) by attending the Conference of State Parties for the implementation of the UNCAC. At a very early stage, Fiji has been recognised to be the key player in combating corruption amongst other Pacific Island countries. The benefit of this recognition, Fiji has been included amongst eighteen (18) countries to be involved in a Pilot Project organised by UNCAC. The Pilot Project is an initiative by UNCAC to assess member states on the progress in complying with the seventy-one (71) Articles of the Convention. 12 In summary, our achievement in the number of cases we have taken to Court in 2008 has set a benchmark for the future. I am indebted to the investigators for their dedication and commitment. FICAC COMMITTEES To enhance transparency and accountability, the following committees were established: (a) Staff Review - attend to all matters pertaining to human resources, development of Officers and address grievances of Officers (b) Corporate Services - monitor and ensure efficient and effective management of FICAC's administration and financial operations (c) Media - plan and develop strategies for press releases and media queries including future developments (d) Occupational Health & Safety - attend to all occupational health & safety matters within the organisation (e) Board of Survey - responsible for maintenance, record keeping and movement of all equipment and furniture Each committee comprises of a Head of Department as Chairperson with members consisting of Officers from various ranks and departments. APPRECIATION I am very grateful to the Government for its support in providing FICAC with the necessary funding to carry out its functions and operation without interruption. A special thank you to His Excellency, the President of the Fiji Islands and the Attorney-General, for their guidance and support of FICAC functions. Finally, I wish to express my sincere and utmost appreciation to the Investigators and Support Staff of FICAC, who have worked tirelessly to carry out their duties in a timely and professional manner. 13 Deputy Commissioner, Mr George Langman Ż with Investigator, Ms Loraini Seru and Overseas Legal Consultant, Mr Paul Madigan Ż Investigators