Delivering the Committee of Supply for the Ethics and Integrity and Directorate speech on Tuesday, the Minister for State President, Moeti Mohwasa, said the move is in line with Section 3, subsection 1 (n), of the Declaration of Assets and Liabilities Act, which empowers him (or Minister for State President) to do so. “Consultations in this regard have commenced,” minister Mohwasa said, further adding that there are other categories that will also be considered for inclusion alongside procurement officers. There have been widespread concerns that indicate that many junior public officers, especially those in the procurement space, are also involved in corruption. Therefore, Mohwasa said widening the scope of the categories of persons who have been left out of the list of persons required to declare would help fight crime. The Ethics and Integrity Directorate was established by section 4 of the Declaration of Assets and Liabilities Act, No. 12 of 2019. The Directorate started its operations in January 2020 and has been receiving declarations since 3rd February 2020. The mandate of the Directorate is to promote and reinforce integrity and accountability in public office through the maintenance of an asset declaration system as per the Declaration of Assets and Liabilities Act.
Mohwasa said the intent and spirit under which the Ethics and Integrity Directorate was created was to establish an autonomous oversight institution that would execute its mandate without any hindrance or interference. However, Mohwasa is of the view that this is not the case due to legal impediments. “This section should be given its full effect and meaning and further enhanced, such that the Director General (DG) reports directly to Parliament. Currently, the Director General reports to the Minister for State President. Mr Chairman, the Ethics and Integrity Directorate should be independent to enable it to discharge its functions fully,” he said. He mentioned that such independence should include the appointment of the DG through an independent and impartial process for transparency and accountability with security of tenure. Additionally, Mohwasa said there should also be improved conditions of service for staff which is competitive and in alignment with best practices and prevailing standards and in other local oversight institutions. Furthermore, Mohwasa said initiatives are being developed to establish a world-class declaration system aimed at systematically monitoring the interest, income, assets and liabilities of public officers. This endeavour, he said, underscores the commitment to enhance transparency ethical governance in public office.
Furthermore, Mohwasa indicated that the Directorate is engaged in the digitisation of its Asset Declaration System which involves the automation of the asset declaration form. “The second phase, which is the development of the back-end is expected to commence in the 2025/2025 financial year. This will assist with processing of the declarations i.e., receiving of declarations and verification of information contained therein to detect corruption, money laundering or acquisition of property from the proceeds of crime,” he said. He explained that this stage will also set up a Digital Register of Interests, Income, Assets and Liabilities which will be accessible to the public upon payment of a prescribed fee. He said the register will feature a list of persons who have declared their declarations and those who failed to submit theirs. Meanwhile, the minister proposed P25, 375, 960 for the Directorate, which consists of P23,975,960 for the Recurrent Budget and P1,400,000 for Development Budget for the financial year 2025/2026.
