The Public Education and Outreach Unit of the Anti-Corruption Commission’s northern regional office has motivated teachers and pupils of Baptist and Saint Philips Junior Secondary Schools at Magbenteh community in Makeni to consistently spurn and fight against corruption. The integrity campaigns took place on 14th and 16th January respectively as part of the Commission’s tenacious efforts to raise awareness on corruption through the spread of tailor-made information.
ACC’s Senior Public Education Officer, Aiah Sourie, informed the pupils that the Anti-Corruption Commission came into being by an Act of Parliament in 2000 to lead in the prevention, investigation, and prosecution of misconduct in the public sector. Ever since, he explained, the Commission has been delivering on its mandate through complimentary departments and units, with greater emphasis on prevention, to ensure quality service delivery to the citizenry. He added that the Commission has made unprecedented recovery of misappropriated public funds of over 60 Billion (old) Leones, and toughened the law against graft with Francis Ben Kaifala Esq its sixth commissioner.
Mr Sourie implored both teachers and pupils to uphold integrity, a quality of doing the right thing aligned with the public good without being watched or supervised. “This is the essential element we all should uphold and stoutly defend as citizens. It is a matter of putting the interest of our dear country above all else,” he said. He therefore urged the teachers to serve as models of integrity by committing to duty and supporting the pupils to pursue their aspirations in a conducive learning atmosphere.
Musa Mansaray, Prevention Officer, cited and dilated on some corruption offences common in schools and their effects. According to him, the unscrupulous use of subsidies by heads of schools has badly impacted school governance with direct effects on learning outcomes. He decried the act pointing out that there are clear-cut guidelines on the use of school subsidies, and school administrators should act accordingly to avoid the wrath of the law. Mr Mansaray also mentioned academic malpractice, specifically examination malpractice, which poses a serious threat to the quality of the country’s education systems.
Bemoaning the phenomenon, the Prevention Officer explained the sad reality of the involvement of school leaders, pupils, and parents in the coordination and financing of what he said should be shunned as an anathema in “our learning institutions.” He then urged teachers to ensure that they properly prepare their candidates to sit public exams with no recourse to ‘received grades’, and the pupils to put your back into their school work.
In his contribution, ACC’s Legal Clerk, Ibrahim Bangura, highlighted corruption offences such as Misappropriation of Public Funds, Abuse of Office, and Abuse of Position in the Anti-Corruption Act of 2008 (as amended in 2019). He identified them as offences often committed by school leaders, while underlining the Commission’s commitment to making corruption a zero-returns venture. Mr Bangura further disclosed that upon conviction, an individual is sentenced to pay a minimum of NLE 50,000 or serve a minimum prison term of five year, or both at the same time. “It is therefore always better to abstain from every form of corruption by being transparent and accountable,” he concluded.
In response to the anti-graft messages, the principals of the schools thanked the Commission for bravely confronting corruption, and pledged to adhere to the ethics of their offices to promote the quality of education in the country. The principals received Information, Education, and Communications materials and accepted to establish, with the support of the ACC, Integrity Clubs in their schools. The clubs will serve as internal mechanisms to foster and instill values in the pupils.
