Communicating with SMEs / NAB Anti-corruption day / Chinese financial probe

Communicating with SMEs on anti-corruption (Blog).  “Our experience clearly emphasises that the effectiveness of communications is much greater, when written materials are supplemented with face-to-face training/mentoring for small groups of SMEs, especially when the trainers/mentors are themselves from business and can discuss the issues in practical business language.”

Brook Horowitz and Jan Dauman/Public Administration Review: https://www.publicadministrationreview.com/2018/10/23/communicating/

 

NAB to create public awareness against corruption.  Pakistan National Accountability Bureau Khyber Pakhtunkhwa director general Farmanullah Khan asked the provincial government to arrange awareness sessions and public events across the province, especially in the tribal districts, to mark Dec 9 as the Anti-Corruption Day.

Dawn: https://www.dawn.com/news/1443224/nab-to-create-public-awareness-against-corruption

 

Anti-graft authorities to inspect financial firms.  The inspections were a response to incidents of misconduct in banks and securities regulators such as intentionally overselling stocks and faking official seals to illegally approve insider dealing, Chinese analysts said.

Xu Hailin/Global Times:http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1125837.shtml

PPP anti-corruption opportunity / Malaysia asset declarations / Chinese police investigated

Public/private partnerships – an opportunity or risk for anti-corruption? (Blog).  “Part of the value of the partnership approach is that law enforcement and private sector compliance analysts can work together, to understand and evaluate financial crime threats and their footprint in the financial system.”

Nick J Maxwell/Public Administration Review: https://www.publicadministrationreview.com/2018/10/23/689/

 

Come clean and be transparent, watchdogs tell PH reps.  Transparency International-Malaysia President Datuk Akhbar Satar said that there is no acceptable reason for anyone in the government not to declare their assets to the government, so that the information can be made public by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commis­sion (MACC).

The Star: https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/11/02/come-clean-and-be-transparent-watchdogs-tell-ph-reps/

 

Chinese police chief kills himself after two former colleagues come under corruption cloud.  A top public security official in China’s resource-rich region of Inner Mongolia killed himself, just days after two of his former colleagues were taken away for investigation by anti-corruption officials.

William Zheng/South China Morning Post: https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/2171435/chinese-police-chief-kills-himself-after-two-former-colleagues

OECD integrity shift / Malaysia no kickbacks / India reporter killed

Focusing efforts and blurring lines: the OECD’s shift from ethics to integrity (Blog).  “The OECD’s shift to integrity is symptomatic of a wider change in the anti-corruption community, which – after years of promoting control and sanction – is growing weary of assertions that these approaches have failed.”

Sofia Wickberg/Public Administration Review: https://www.publicadministrationreview.com/2018/10/23/662/

 

Development projects in PD which have corruption or kickbacks will be cancelled says Anwar.  Port Dickson MP Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has warned that he will cancel any projects in the constituency found to have elements of corruption or kickbacks by developers; he also set three conditions for companies looking to develop hotels in PD: cleaning up the beach, creating local jobs, and providing employees accommodation. 

The Star:https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/10/31/development-projects-in-pd-which-have-corruption-or-kickbacks-will-be-cancelled-says-anwar/

 

Local reporter covering corruption is abducted and beaten to death in Jharkhand, India.  The police said they believe that Tiwari was targeted for exposing the alleged financial irregularities of Singh, who is a private contractor involved in government-funded scheme to support rural employment.

Committee to Protect Journalists: https://cpj.org/2018/11/local-reporter-covering-corruption-is-abducted-and.php

Malaysia business optimistic / Technology enabling corruption / Doing Business report

FMM: There’s positive effect in war against graft.  The war against corruption is having a positive effect on Malaysia as fairness and equality will attract a higher level of investment in Malaysia, said Fede­ration of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) president Datuk Soh Thian Lai

The Star: https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/10/31/fmm-theres-positive-effect-in-war-against-graft/

 

Could technology be an enabler for corruption? (Blog).  “…organized or white collar criminals are experts in using data for corrupt things. It’s really about new ways of using data for corruption or anti-corruption and whoever is getting better in that will have the upper hand.”

Manasseh Azure Awuni/Transparency International: https://voices.transparency.org/could-technology-be-an-enabler-of-corruption-f19738e3583a

 

Doing Business 2019 (Resource).  Doing Business 2019 is the 16th in World Bank’s series of annual reports investigating the regulations that enhance business activity and those that constrain it.

World Bank: http://www.worldbank.org/content/dam/doingBusiness/media/Annual-Reports/English/DB2019-report_web-version.pdf

Pacific Anti-Corruption Updates (3 November 2018): Fiji, PNG, Solomon Islands, Cook Islands

FIJI:

FLP to consider reinstating PWD to be responsible for roads infrastructure and terminate role of FRA.  The Fiji Labour Party manifesto also says that they will appoint an independent commission with powers to inquire into allegations of corruption and to prosecute offenders, both in private and political office.

http://fijivillage.com/news/FLP-to-consider-reinstating-PWD-to-be-responsible-for-roads-infrastructure-and-terminate-role-of-FRA-sr9k52

Fiji Attends AIBA Congress.  “This is a critical time in the history of amateur boxing, as it sees itself on the brink of expulsion from the Olympics as a political battle and governance issues threatens the sport exclusion from Tokyo 2020,” he said.

http://fijisun.com.fj/2018/11/02/fiji-attends-aiba-congress/

Senior FRCS staff fronts court on corruption charges; Court hears of alleged $4.1m loss caused.  Shameem Khan, 48, charged with two separate counts of abuse of office and general dishonesty causing loss was granted bail by the Suva Magistrates Court.

https://www.fijitimes.com/senior-frcs-staff-fronts-court-on-corruption-charges-court-hears-of-alleged-4-1m-loss-caused/

Fiji CJ to rule on FICAC appeal two days before election. Fiji's Chief Justice is to deliver a judgement on an appeal against political party leader Sitiveni Rabuka's acquittal of electoral fraud on Monday the 12th of November.

https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/369859/fiji-cj-to-rule-on-ficac-appeal-two-days-before-election

NFP Man In Court. A lawyer and National Federation Party candidate appeared in the Rakiraki Magistrates Court yesterday charged with one count of conversion and one count of money laundering.

http://fijisun.com.fj/2018/11/02/nfp-man-in-court/

3 Former Executives Of Big Supermarket Chain Charged For Money Laundering. Three former executives of a major supermarket chain have been charged for their alleged involvement in deceptively obtaining more than $200,000 between 2011 and 2016 whilst employed at the headquarters in Nasinu.

http://fijisun.com.fj/2018/10/31/3-former-executives-of-big-supermarket-chain-charged-for-money-laundering/

 

PNG:

Morauta seeks probe into PNG govt luxury car deal. A Papua New Guinea opposition MP has written to the Ombudsman Commission and Police Fraud Squad calling for inquiries into the APEC luxury cars scandal.

https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/370058/morauta-seeks-probe-into-png-govt-luxury-car-deal

Thousands hold 'Maserati strike' in PNG amid anger at Apec summit spending. “It’s a protest against the corruption associated with the hosting of Apec. It’s not a protest against world leaders, it’s a protest against our own corrupt, unaccountable politicians,” he said.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/oct/26/apec-summit-papua-new-guinea-maserati-thousands-strike

Study finds PNG 2017 election largely neither fair or free. Many voters were denied a fair choice in last year's Papua New Guinea general election, according to analysis by the Australian National University.

https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/369869/study-finds-png-2017-election-largely-neither-fair-or-free

 

SOLOMON ISLANDS:

Solomons MP arrested and charged for corruption. A member of parliament in Solomon Islands has been arrested and charged with corruption.

https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/programmes/datelinepacific/audio/2018669354/solomons-mp-arrested-and-charged-for-corruption

 

COOK ISLANDS:

Cook Islands government ministries have a real problem when it comes to documentation supporting their figures in official financial statements.  That’s the opinion of Audit Office head Allen Parker, who added poor internal controls and record keeping made auditing “very difficult”.

http://www.cookislandsnews.com/national/politics/item/71209-ministry-issues-dog-audit/71209-ministry-issues-dog-audit

Ocean floor holds rich future. Lynch said cobalt was currently only available from the Democratic Republic of Congo “and it is called ‘conflict cobalt’ because of tribal warfare, corruption and social impacts; the comment was made as tenders for applications to explore Cook Islands seafloor are set to open in January.

http://www.cookislandsnews.com/item/71099-ocean-floor-holds-rich-future

 

Corruption gendered dimension / Bangladesh ex-PM jailed / KPK palm-oil raid

Add women and stir? Exploring the gendered dimension of corruption (Blog).  The inherent danger of instrumentalizing women in key positions as a tool to combat corruption, coupled with the lack of institutional effort to include gendered dimensions (such as sextortion) as part of the fight against corruption, cannot result in more than a kind of ‘add women and stir’ strategy.

Rrita Ismajli and Miranda Loli/Public Administration Review: https://www.publicadministrationreview.com/2018/10/22/651/

 

Bangladesh court jails ex-PM Zia for seven years for corruption.  Bangladesh's imprisoned opposition leader Khaleda Zia was handed another seven years in prison on corruption charges her supporters say are politically motivated to prevent her running in general elections due at the end of the year.

Aljazeera: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/10/bangladesh-court-jails-pm-zia-7-years-corruption-181029065602070.html

KPK raids Sinar Mas subsidiaries’ offices in bribery investigation.  KPK spokesman Febri Diansyah said investigators had conducted searches in the offices of both PT Sinar Mas Agro Resources and Technology (SMART) and PT Binasawit Abadi Pratama (BAP) corporations, which are subsidiaries of Singapore-listed palm oil company Golden Agri-Resources Ltd., as part of their investigation into an alleged bribery case in Central Kalimantan.

Kharishar Kahfi/The Jakarta Post: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2018/10/30/kpk-raids-sinar-mas-subsidiaries-offices-in-bribery-investigation.html

 

Pakistan financial integrity / Blockchain in Thailand / Hong Kong denies influence

Fighting corruption through strengthening financial integrity: Reflections on Pakistan’s experience (Blog).  “Based on our current research that examines the role of Pakistan’s financial system in preventing the laundering of the proceeds of grand corruption, we suggest that bolstering financial integrity in source countries of corruption-related financial flows is integral to law enforcement efforts, indispensable to building a sustainable domestic anti-corruption framework, and a necessary first line of defence against corruption and capital flight.”

Tom Keatinge and Anton Moiseienko/Public Administration Review:https://www.publicadministrationreview.com/2018/10/22/647/

 

Blockchain tech seen as a tool to curb corruption.  Thai experts and social entrepreneurs have placed high hopes on benefiting from the advanced blockchain technology that would be able to, for example, be used with asset declarations or public procurement-related information to enhance the transparency, as well as be used to promote good governance in private sector.

Jintana Panyaarvudh/The Nation: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30357379

 

Departing Hong Kong anti-graft director rejects suggestions of Beijing interference in ICAC’s operations.  The outgoing investigation chief of Hong Kong’s graft-buster, Richy Yu Chun-cheong, has rejected any notion of interference by mainland Chinese authorities in the operations of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) amid increasing cross-border ties, insisting checks and balances on its work are stronger than ever.

Chris Lau/South China Morning Post: https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/2170564/departing-hong-kong-anti-graft-director-rejects