By: Thaimu Bai Sesay
Exclusively funded by the government of Sierra Leone, His Excellency the President Julius Maada Bio has on Monday 5th June, 2023 commissioned the newly constructed Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) headquarter building referred to as Integrity House at Tower Hill Freetown.
Addressing attendants as the keynote speaker, His Excellency Julius Maada Bio President of the Republic of Sierra Leone started off by congratulating the ACC Commissioner and team for their dedication in the fight against corruption. He expressed certainty that the fight against corruption remained a fight they must fight and a fight they must win. He said that the commission as a team was quite small but with collective effort, they would continue to make progress in the fight.
“In 2019, I signed into law an amendment of the Anti-Corruption Act that significantly strengthened the hands of the Anti-Corruption Commission. That was my very first act. That legislative change amongst other things established a special Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court of Sierra Leone, with dedicated Judges to expeditiously try corruption cases. That has had a very positive impact on our fight against corruption”, President Bio recalled.
President Bio underscored the achievements and successes of his five years government, particularly in the fight against corruption. He confirmed that the ACC, in these five years, had recovered over 45 billion leones from individuals who had to pay state funds. He added that the Commission had reviewed its policies and procedures in over 14 MDAs with a view to strengthen service delivery, integrity and accountability.
On the international awards, President Bio said that the ACC had on the Transparency International Global Corruption Perception Index moved Sierra Leone 19 places upwards since 2018 and scored 34 points above the Sub-Saharan average of 33. He furthered that they had scored 70 percent consistently in the fight against corruption according to the new MCC report. Recounting these successes President Bio emphasized, “I am not going to fix this nation but I am going to fix the foundation upon which this nation would be built because I have too short a time.”
President Bio confirmed that the project of the building started in 2014 but said it was abandoned like a carcass. He said that they did not have money but they did it out of commitment. He assured that they had chosen the path of development and expressed confidence that he would win the next election.
The Chief Justice of the Republic of Sierra Leone Desmond Edwards Babatunde in his statement affirmed that the money used in the building was a money well spent and furthered that it was not from international donors but from the hard earn coffers of the government of Sierra Leone. He explained that although they were expecting support but nothing was received.
“Consequently, I had to go solo in the setting up of the infrastructure of the Anti-Corruption Commssion Division and the eventual commissioning of the court No. 5 and 6, and the Independent Registry which were purposely built and commissioned on the 9th of December, 2019, while you too had now come up with this building single handedly with the government spending”, He expressed.
The Chief Justice statistically highlighted the number of ACC cases in court and confirmed that they had recovered over 4 billion leones from the prosecuted cases. He congratulated President Bio’s Government, ACC Boss and Team for the outstanding building and expressed commitment to continue working with the ACC. He continued expressing warning to those who steals government money saying “Gone are those days when government officials would steal government monies and go scoot free.”
The Commissioner of the Anti-Corruption Commission Francis Ben Kaifala in his statement explained his passion for the job. He recalled when he was called by the President to help in the fight against corruption which he said was something he heard always wanted to hear.
The Commissioner recalled that in 2018 Sierra Leone was rated as the most corrupt country in the world in terms of bribery by Transparency International and Today they were recognized as one of the high performers in the fight against corruption in Africa. He said that Sierra Leone was at 49 percent in the MCC report and said down the line they had gone higher than 83 percent, saying they had passed that control of corruption score card five years in a roll. He made mentioned of the AfroBiometer report and other institution’s ratings.
The ACC Boss confirmed that President Bio gave them the maximum support they needed in the fight and said that had moved other countries to come and learn from Sierra Leone. He referred His Excellency President Bio as the real champion of corruption.
The Deputy Commissioner of Anti-Corruption Commission Augustine Foday Ngobie in his welcoming address explained that the project was proposed in 2014 entirely as a one-story building. He said President Bio added two more stories to it making it three. He affirmed that the ACC was in a rented place and said “it now has a place it can call home”.
Representing Civil Societies, Ibrahim Tommy Head of Centre for Accountability and Rule of Law expressed that he was proud of the current administration of the Anti-Corruption Commission in the last five years. He said they had witnessed a lot of money recovery and other achievements. Despite all, he said there was still more work to be done and said he believed that was why the building had been finally constructed.
Civil Societies urged the government to continue to support the ACC and also allow it to work independently. He said the fight would not be in one day or even five years and equally urged everyone including SCOs to contribute in the fight against corruption.
