Noa delays ACC reforms

SEVERAL Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) officials are accusing director general, Paulus Noa, of sitting on recommendations that would sharpen the legal powers of the agency to fight corruption.

has seen two documents, allegedly stuck in Noa’s office, that provide detailed recommendations to improve the performance of the ACC.

The proposed changes by ACC staff include, among others, criminalising conflict of interest, introducing term limits for the ACC boss, reducing political interference in investigations, and further empowering investigators.

A senior official in the Office of the Prime Minister – which oversees the ACC – said the latest proposals to review the Anti-Corruption Act come from 2014. ACC officials made the recommendations over the years, but they are worried that their inputs are stuck on Noa’s desk.

The stalling of proposals on Noa’s desk has frustrated ACC officials, who are complaining that the director general is deliberately sitting on proposed changes which could also affect his job.

Noa yesterday denied delaying the proposed changes.

An official briefed about this matter, said officials at the ACC are also fuming that Noa’s frequent foreign trips are affecting the progress of reforms.

newspaper reported in February this year that Noa spent over 300 days travelling abroad between 2014 and 2016. Noa said at the time that the travelling came with the job.

One of the review documents was prepared by the ACC’s public education and corruption prevention department, and states that there is a need to increase penalties for corruption.

The ACC law states that those found guilty of corruption can be fined up to N$500 000, or sentenced to 25 years in prison.

“The maximum fine and term of imprisonment are very low. This should be adjusted and determined by the severity of the offence on a case by case basis,” ACC officials said in their submission.

The same document also suggested that the anti-corruption law should empower the ACC to also investigate foreign public officials implicated in bribery cases.

Noa has over the years played down conflict of interest cases involving prominent people. In some cases, he asked suspects to investigate themselves, and branded some cases as “administrative corruption”.

The other document compiled by the ACC officials states that there is a need to redefine corruption, adding that conflict of interest should be made an offence under the law. The document also suggested that the law should be changed to also ensure that the director general is legally compelled to declare his assets and interests annually.

The current law states that the ACC director general and the deputy should only submit a list of what they own to the Prime Minister after their appointment.

The ACC officials recommended that such declarations should be similar to the declarations of all other political appointees.

The current law also states that the ACC may, in agreement with the Prime Minister, appoint experts as temporary special investigators.

“Is the concurrence of the Prime Minister really needed here? In one recent example, the concurrence of the Prime Minister was sought, resulting in her seeking opinions elsewhere, which may compromise planned investigations,” the officials warned.

Noa has in the past dropped corruption investigations implicating powerful people because of a “lack of evidence”. The documents show that the ACC officials also raised concerns of cases being closed by Noa before proper investigations are done.

Officials said the law should clarify how a decision to investigate or drop a case should be reached.

“This will cut out the current practice of good cases being closed by the director general due to the fact that the information during the recording phase was not sufficient,” the ACC document states.

Noa is now in his third five-year term as director general of the ACC, since taking office in 2006. The ACC law does not set the maximum years or terms an ACC director general can serve. Noa was re-appointed in 2015 up to 2020 by President Hage Geingob.

The Namibian understands that the proposals include a plan to limit the number of years a director general can serve. Noa could qualify for re-appointment in 2020 if the law is not changed.

There is also a proposal to trim the director general’s powers by creating a board or parliamentary committee to provide oversight over the ACC boss.

Officials furthermore asked for the law to be changed to give investigators powers to have vehicles fitted with removable warning lights and sirens.

“Whether it is liked or not, we conduct sting operations and arrest people, and it is sometimes necessary to travel over the speed limit and skip traffic lights in order to ensure a swift arrest,” it further states.

Noa told this week that the law-changing process had different stages. “It is not a one-day event, as imagined by your source,” he said.