SUVA OFFICE WESTERN OFFICE NORTHERN OFFICE Rev. John Hunt House Housing Authority Building Top Floor 3 St. Fort Street 14 Tavewa Avenue Post Fiji Building P.O Box 2335, Lautoka Labasa Government Buildings, P.O. Box 7106, P.O Box 9, Suva, Fiji. Lautoka, Fiji. Labasa, Fiji Phone: 3310 290/ 3310 291 Phone: 6668 093 Phone: 8816 793 Fax: 3310 145/ 3310 297 Fax: 6669 083 Fax: 8816 792 Toll Free: 1322 (Vodafone and Digicel) www.ficac.org.fj 2010 Annual Report Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption Submitted to His Excellency, the President of the Republic of Fiji in accordance with Section 17 of the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption Promulgation No. 11 of 2007 OUR VISION Ensuring the people of Fiji live a life free of corruption 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 • Independence • Professionalism • Integrity • Commitment • Impartiality • Accountability 2 I CONTENTS I Introduction Promulgation 4 Organization 4 Responsibilities of the Commissioner 4 Message from the Deputy Commissioner Overview 6 Complaints 6 Legal & Prosecution 6 Investigation 6 Training 6 Developments 6 Education & Awareness 7 FICAC Committees 7 Appreciation 7 Administration Department Functions 11 General Administration 11 Human Resources Management 11 Training & Development of Officers 13 Commendations 16 Investigations Department Establishment 20 Responsibility and Power 20 Prosecution of Cases 20 Legal and Prosecution Department Functions 24 Cases 24 Community & Education Department Functions 27 Complaints 27 Education & Awareness 29 Public Affairs & Promotions 31 FICAC Website 33 Finance Department Establishment 37 Financial Statements for 2010 38 Appendices 1 - Organization Structure 47 2 - FICAC 2010 Court Case Summary 48 3 – Summary of Complaints Received 54 4 - Education & Awareness Presentation 56 5 - Education & Awareness Visits 58 3 I INTRODUCTION I 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. ORGANIZATION The Organization comprises of the Office of the Deputy Commissioner and five (5) functional departments, namely: • Investigation • Legal & Prosecution • Community & Education • Administration • Finance FICAC’s organization structure is explained in detail 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 4 I INTRODUCTION I (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 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; (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 occurrences of corrupt practices; (g) educate the public against the evils of corruption; and, (h) enlist and foster public support in combating corruption. 5 MESSAGE FROM THE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER GEORGE W. LANGMAN OVERVIEW As Deputy Commissioner of the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC), I present the Annual Report of FICAC for 2010. The achievements outlined in this Report are a clear reflection of the commitment and dedication of the Officers in executing its mandate as provided under the FICAC Promulgation. To elaborate further on our achievements for the year, I wish to highlight a few issues captured in the Report. COMPLAINTS In 2010, FICAC received a total of 9,281 complaints (via mail correspondence, in person or the FICAC toll free line). This is an increase of 4,916 complaints received compared to 2009 and 6,914 more than 2008. This increase is very encouraging for FICAC as it clearly indicates the public’s confidence in our ability to curb corruption and bring to court corrupt individuals. LEGAL & PROSECUTION Our Legal & Prosecution Department prosecuted fifteen (15) new cases, closed twenty-two (22) pending cases from previous years and achieved fifteen (15) convictions. INVESTIGATION The total number of investigations carried out in 2010 decreased compared to the previous year as more emphasis was placed on scrutinizing our current list of cases. TRAINING On the training front, FICAC continued to provide its Officers with the necessary training to further develop their skills and knowledge. During the year nine (9) FICAC Officers attended the Criminal Investigation training offered by the Fiji Police Academy. The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Academy (MACA) also facilitated a Forensic Accounting course for thirteen (13) FICAC Financial Investigators. DEVELOPMENTS FICAC engaged the services of professional Information Technology Experts to develop the Case Management System (CMS) specifically to our requirements. The CMS aims to increase efficiency between Investigators and Legal through proper storage and management of case files. Full implementation of the CMS is expected in 2011. 6 EDUCATION AND AWARENESS Education will always be a key strategy of FICAC in the fight against corruption. For this, the Community and Education Department conducted an aggressive awareness campaign in the public sector as well as community level. FICAC Officers also traveled to the outskirts of the country to carry out their education and awareness programme in both the Hindi and Fijian languages to the rural communities. FICAC COMMITTEES To ensure transparency and accountability is maintained within FICAC, internal committees are established with specific responsibilities and functions as follows: (a) Board of Survey - responsible for the maintenance, record keeping and movement of all equipment and furniture (b) Budget Strategy Committee - analyze and plan future budget requirements for FICAC (c) Compliance Committee - conduct internal audit of individual Department and other Committees to ensure procedures are adhered to (d) Corporate Services - monitor and ensure efficient and effective management of FICAC’s administration and financial operations (e) Media Committee - plan and develop strategies for press releases and media queries including future developments (f) Occupational Health & Safety - attend to all occupational health & safety matters within FICAC (g) Welfare Committee - responsible for all staff welfare matters and control of welfare accounts (h) Staff Review & Discipline - attend to all matters pertaining to human resources including development, grievances and disciplinary matters (i) Tender Board/Evaluation - review and process all requests for FICAC tenders Each committee comprises of a Manager and Officers from various ranks and departments. APPRECIATION FICAC is grateful to the Government for providing the organization with the necessary funding to carry out its functions and operations without interruption. A special thank you to His Excellency, the President of the Republic of Fiji, the Honorable Prime Minister, Honorable Attorney-General, Honorable Chief Justice, and Former High Court Judge, Justice Nazhat Shameem for their guidance and support of FICAC functions. FICAC also owes much of its success to its dedicated Officers for their continuous effort in fighting corruption. To all FICAC Officers, thank you for your loyalty, dedication and selfless contribution to the organization. 7 I FINANCIAL FORENSIC TRAINING I FICAC Deputy Commissioner with Professor Syed Noh Bin Syed Ahmad and Mr. Loh Koh Koon of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Academy I INTERNATIONAL ANTI-CORRUPTION DAY I The Chief