By: Alex A. Bah, Communications Officer, ACC
The President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Brig. (Rtd.) Dr. Julius Maada Bio has on Monday, 5th June, 2023, commissioned the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) ultra-modern headquarters building named ‘Integrity House’. This monumental edifice sits at the top of Tower Hill, flanked by the House of Parliament and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
Delivering his address at the event, the President profoundly commended the Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner and staff of the Commission, describing them as great warriors in the fight against graft. He described corruption as an “existential threat” to the image, integrity and wholesomeness of the State that weigh its huge cost on not only public service delivery and public trust, but also National Cohesion. "And as you all know, these are critical components for nation building and development," the President said.
The President emphasized the need for public officers to eschew the flagrant abuse of public offices, and also the compelling need to sanitize the private sector from corruption.
"The fight against Corruption is a fight we must fight, and a fight we must win", the President said whilst noting the unimaginable gains the country has made in the fight in the last five years. These gains, he said, started with the amendment of the Anti-Corruption Act 2008 in 2019, which significantly strengthened the Commission, the establishment of the Special Anti-Corruption Division within the High Court of Sierra Leone that has seen the expeditious trial of anti-corruption matters and an impressive high conviction rate. The President also noted that over 45 Billion (Old) Leones had been recovered and returned to the State during this period.
The President also said that the Commission has done extensive systems and processes review in over 14 public institutions, and has unprecedentedly heightened its public education campaigns to combat graft. He said the image of Sierra Leone has been laundered with its impressive scores in every global and local assessments and indices, including the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Scorecard, Transparency International Corruption Perception Index (TI- CPI), Afro Barometer, among others.
Making his statement, the ACC Commissioner, Francis Ben Kaifala Esq. thanked the President for providing him the amplitude and support, wherewithal for his work as the Head of the ACC. He equally noted emphatically that such support is what has informed Sierra Leone's impressive standings in every local indexes and assessments. "In the MCC Scorecard, before I was appointed by the President, we were failing at 49%, but down the years we have scored as high as 83%," the Commissioner revealed.
Mr. Kaifala further said, Sierra Leone that previously failed miserably and was in 2013 ranked the most corrupt country in the world by Transparency International, was now for the last five years trailblazing as one of the high performers in Africa, something that has attracted the attention and admiration of other countries that often come to learn from Sierra Leone.
The Commissioner went further to describe the Integrity House as a symbol of the commitment of the President in the fight against corruption. He said although the Commission has done amazing work in its previously small rented apartment, there was always the compelling need for the Commission to have the proper working environment.
The Honorable Chief Justice of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Desmond Babatunde Edwards in his statement commended the Government of Sierra Leone for putting up the edifice on its own and not from any donor, adding that the money is indeed well and judiciously spent.
"Today l celebrate the fact that we can converge and commission an edifice of this nature, which speaks volumes of Sierra Leone's commitment to fighting Corruption which has been a menace to the country's development efforts," the Chief Justice said.
Executive Director of the Center for Accountability and the Rule of Law (CARL), Ibrahim Tommy, spoke on behalf of civil society organizations, noting that Sierra Leone has experienced an impressive progress in the last five years with its current leadership. He said that there has been an increased recovery of stolen funds, more progressive anti-corruption legal framework, and an improvement in the success rate of cases sent to court.
He expressed hope that the building will inspire the leadership and staff of the ACC, and also the people of Sierra Leone to continue to fight against corruption. "I urge the Government on this occasion to continue its funding and support to the ACC and allow it to operate independently and effectively as it has done in the last five years,” Mr. Tommy noted.
The Chairperson of the event, Sao-Kpato Hannah Isata Max-Kyne, who is also Commissioner of the National Commission for Social Action ( NaCSA), earlier in her opening remarks, said that the ‘Integrity House’ represents the Government's firm and permanent commitment to the fight against corruption. She said that her institution has had a fruitful partnership with the ACC in the implementation of the Social Safety Net (SSN) poverty alleviation project, and realized great improvement in terms of delivery and accountability.
Earlier, Deputy Commissioner of ACC, Augustine Foday Ngobie, in his welcome statement, outlined the many successes the Commission has scored in the last five years, and acknowledged the President for his outstanding support, which has resulted in the completion of the ACC “Integrity House”. He further thanked all the staff of ACC for their support and also the contractor for the significant changes they did to the initial plan of the building.
Director of Investigations and Intelligence at the ACC, Evelyn Kuyateh delivered the vote of thanks, and the event was climaxed by the cutting of the ribbon, unveiling of the plaque and tour of the offices by His Excellency the President.
©Public Relations Unit, ACC
