By Mabinty M. Kamara
The Anti-Corruption Commission has warned public officials against failing to declare their assets to the commission.
In a statement from the commission, it said officials who fail to declare their assets beyond the extended date will face penalties. The initial date for the submission of the asset declaration form was March 31st, but according to the commission, a good number of public officials have defaulted against the process.
"Pursuant to Section 119(1) of the Anti-Corruption Act 2008 (as Amended in 2019) all public officers who are to declare their assets and have failed to do so are now in default. Section 119(1) states as follows:
“Every public officer shall, within three months of becoming a public officer, deposit with the Commission a declaration of his income, assets and liabilities and thereafter in every two years that he is public officer, but not later than 31st March of that second year, deposit further declaration of his income, assets and liabilities and also while leaving office,” the statement reads in part.
Patric Sandi, Director of Public Education at the ACC, told Politico that the law made provisions for the Commissioner to extend the date for the submission of the Asset Declaration Forms for not more than six months, noting that that is what the Commissioner has done by extending the date to 31st May 2020.
"Pursuant to Section 119(4) of the Anti-Corruption Act 2008, the Commissioner can extend the declaration period up to a period of six months, which is what the commissioner has done by given an extension to the 31st May 2020 which is even less than that but that does not mean he will extend again so anyone who fail to submit on or before the said date will face the penalties," he told Politico.
According to ACC law, defaulters could face penalties like suspension, withholding salary and dismissal.
Government is the biggest employer in the country; this means that the ACC will have to process thousands of forms every year for this process.
Copyright © 2020 Politico Online
