EDITORIAL: ACC singing like a canary again
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) is at it again. Before the dust settles on its public relations-like statement on the conduct of higher education minister Itah Kandjii-Murangi, the anti-graft body has let off another salvo in the Imms Mulunga debacle.
There are ambits and parameters within which an institution like the ACC should express itself. Each word we utter carries meaning and we have to be absolutely sure that that’s the meaning and understanding we want to put forth.
In the Mulunga case, it was sufficient to simply reveal that there was no criminal or corrupt intent on the part of the Namcor boss. That Mulunga acted in favour of the company and the country is stuff we expect to hear from himself or his legal representatives.
But that’s not the worst part. The ACC dived, head and shoulders, into the suspension of Mulunga – something it has absolutely nothing to do with.
Even if Mulunga is being victimised as widely perceived, it is not the ACC’s arena to traverse.
After all, Mulunga’s suspension does not relate to the Angolan oil deal the ACC investigated. He was suspended on different charges that did not form part of the investigation, therefore it remains unclear how the commission diverted its attention into a matter not in the scope of its investigation.
The ACC’s job is to investigate corruption; not take sides, even of the innocent. The recent public pronouncements do not depict an image of an independent and apolitical commission.
There are ambits and parameters within which an institution like the ACC should express itself. Each word we utter carries meaning and we have to be absolutely sure that that’s the meaning and understanding we want to put forth.
In the Mulunga case, it was sufficient to simply reveal that there was no criminal or corrupt intent on the part of the Namcor boss. That Mulunga acted in favour of the company and the country is stuff we expect to hear from himself or his legal representatives.
But that’s not the worst part. The ACC dived, head and shoulders, into the suspension of Mulunga – something it has absolutely nothing to do with.
Even if Mulunga is being victimised as widely perceived, it is not the ACC’s arena to traverse.
After all, Mulunga’s suspension does not relate to the Angolan oil deal the ACC investigated. He was suspended on different charges that did not form part of the investigation, therefore it remains unclear how the commission diverted its attention into a matter not in the scope of its investigation.
The ACC’s job is to investigate corruption; not take sides, even of the innocent. The recent public pronouncements do not depict an image of an independent and apolitical commission.
Comments
Namibian Sun
No comments have been left on this article