By REBECCA MUSHOTA –
THE Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has said that the legal requirement for public firms to form integrity committees will help seal loop-holes and halt practices that breed corruption.
ACC acting director general Kapetwa Phiri has said integrity committees in public institutions had boosted the fight against corruption through introduction of whistle-blower policies and service charters in law-enforcement and regulatory institutions.
He said he was happy with the progress that Zambia had so far recorded in the fight against corruption as 56 organisations had formed integrity committees, of which 54 were in the public sector.
Mr Phiri said this yesterday at the Commonwealth Africa heads of anti-corruption agencies training being held in Pretoria, South Africa, which has drawn the participation of more than 13 countries from Africa.
This is according to a statement issued by First Secretary for Press at the Zambian High Commission in South Africa Naomi Nyawali.
Mr Phiri said Zambia has scored significant achievements towards the creation of a corrupt free Zambia by embracing e-governance as a mechanism of reducing contact between members of the public and service providers.
He said the creation of a corrupt-free Zambia was a national programme as Government was inculcating ethical values and patriotism in its citizens.
And Mr Phiri called for increased collaboration between anti-corruption agencies across Africa to help bring out coordination among countries in fighting corruption as it was trans-boundary in nature.
He said that coordination among agencies would help to successfully prosecute economic crimes whose proceeds have been invested in foreign jurisdiction.