Corruption a threat: Kalinoe

By HELEN TARAWA
Corruption threatens livelihoods, health, environment and economic prosperity, Justice and Attorney-General Secretary Dr Lawrence Kalinoe says.
He was speaking at the opening of the first senior officials’ meeting (SOM1) workshop of Apec best practices and experience sharing on corruption prevention mechanisms.
Kalinoe said corruption challenged and threatened socio-economic development in the digital age.
“The challenge for our economies is not necessarily how resilient we are to the effects of corruption,” he said.
“The challenge now is how resilient our systems are to prevent corruption.
“I encourage you to have frank and open discussions in this workshop so that you can contribute effectively to the fight against corruption.”
Deputy State-Solicitor Jena Kuliniasi said the conversation within Apec on anti-corruption efforts and initiative focused on reactive measures.
She said corruption had and continued to be a great challenge for all economies in the Asia-Pacific region and throughout the world.
“There are many cases of what corruption can do to economies,” Kuliniasi said.
“It thrives on weak and ineffective government business processes and systems, which in turn impedes the delivery of vital services, equitable economic growth and sustainable and inclusive opportunities for all.
“Effective preventive measures and mechanisms are vital to ensuring loopholes within government and business systems and processes are identified before they serve as a conduit for unjust enrichment and abuse.”