ACC needs more money to do their job
Funding a long-term problem
The ACC say they lack the resources necessary to produce the outcomes expected of the corruption watchdog.
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) is at the bottom of the receiving end when it comes to national budget allocations, ACC deputy director general Erna van Der Merwe told Erongo 24/7 at a media event in Swakopmund last week.
She said the fact remains that the public expects the corruption watchdog to be in a position to deliver results.
“Without adequate funding, it is virtually impossible to be successful in what is expected from us. So, we need adequate resources to make this a possibility,” she said. Van der Merwe cited the limitations that a lack of resources is placing on the transnational Fishrot investigation as an example.
The investigation has required that ACC investigators are sent abroad, including to Iceland, home to one of the main subjects in the case: the Samherji fishing company.
She explained that in Iceland, the Namibian team are working with Icelandic stakeholders on the matter, which involves volumes of material only available in the Icelandic language.
A problem for the investigators is that there are insufficient resources available to ensure a proper translation of all the material. Moreover, there are no recognised Icelandic interpreters available in Namibia.
Finding a translator and funding translations is costly, she said.
“For us, this is unaffordable. If you do not receive the support from the other country (which involves a negotiation process), then who will carry these costs?” she asked, stating that even Iceland has its own challenges with public funding.
General problem
She said the Icelandic media has raised the issue about the lack of funds for investigations with government and others.
“It is similar in Namibia. If we are expected to deliver, we should be adequately funded. Is our funding currently adequate? No. Definitely not!” she concluded.
She said she hopes treasury will provide the commission with adequate and additional funding, to "at least enable us to execute our mandate which the public expects from us”.
Old problems
The ACC’s complaint about a funding problem is not new, and has reportedly not only impacted major investigations like Fishrot, but also smaller investigations.
The commission was allocated N$61 612 000 in the 2020/21 financial year, of which N$58 545 274 was spent. Personnel expenditure represented 72.37%.
According to the operational budgetary allocation vote for 2022/23 - 2024/25, core operations of the ACC “were not adequately funded”.
Forecasts until 2025 suggest that the ACCs budgetary allocation will not increase by much, if at all.
She said the fact remains that the public expects the corruption watchdog to be in a position to deliver results.
“Without adequate funding, it is virtually impossible to be successful in what is expected from us. So, we need adequate resources to make this a possibility,” she said. Van der Merwe cited the limitations that a lack of resources is placing on the transnational Fishrot investigation as an example.
The investigation has required that ACC investigators are sent abroad, including to Iceland, home to one of the main subjects in the case: the Samherji fishing company.
She explained that in Iceland, the Namibian team are working with Icelandic stakeholders on the matter, which involves volumes of material only available in the Icelandic language.
A problem for the investigators is that there are insufficient resources available to ensure a proper translation of all the material. Moreover, there are no recognised Icelandic interpreters available in Namibia.
Finding a translator and funding translations is costly, she said.
“For us, this is unaffordable. If you do not receive the support from the other country (which involves a negotiation process), then who will carry these costs?” she asked, stating that even Iceland has its own challenges with public funding.
General problem
She said the Icelandic media has raised the issue about the lack of funds for investigations with government and others.
“It is similar in Namibia. If we are expected to deliver, we should be adequately funded. Is our funding currently adequate? No. Definitely not!” she concluded.
She said she hopes treasury will provide the commission with adequate and additional funding, to "at least enable us to execute our mandate which the public expects from us”.
Old problems
The ACC’s complaint about a funding problem is not new, and has reportedly not only impacted major investigations like Fishrot, but also smaller investigations.
The commission was allocated N$61 612 000 in the 2020/21 financial year, of which N$58 545 274 was spent. Personnel expenditure represented 72.37%.
According to the operational budgetary allocation vote for 2022/23 - 2024/25, core operations of the ACC “were not adequately funded”.
Forecasts until 2025 suggest that the ACCs budgetary allocation will not increase by much, if at all.
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