Sierra Leone: As 200,000 Public Officials Fail To Declare Assets

 New Anti-Corruption Commission czar, Ady Macauley, has disclosed to   journalists that approximately 200,000 public officials are yet to declare their assets to the commission, adding that plans are underway to crackdown on defaulters.

 “I will make use of my office in making sure that we crackdown on public officials who refuse to declare their assets. It is mandatory by law and they must abide by it,” he said.

Section 119 of the Anti-Corruption Commission Act of 2008 makes it mandatory for all public officials to declare their assets to the commission each year, although the content is not made public, contrary to best practice and standards in accountability and transparency.

While Mr. Macauley insists that lifting the veil on secret assets declarations is not part of his reform drive, he told journalists last week that the commission would engage officials of the Ministry of Finance to withhold salaries of public officials who fail to declare their assets to the commission.

 “The 2008 Anti-Corruption Act has given me the hammer to crush corrupt tigers and flies. Trust me I will not hesitate whether be you big or small, once you fall within the ambit of the law, I will hunt you down,” he vowed.

He said the 2008 Act stipulates that public officials should declare their assets to the commission within three months upon assumption of office, adding that they are working on designing a software application where people can fill the asset declaration forms directly instead of going to the ACC office.