Forty join war against corruption

By OLIVE SUKUN
MORE than 40 government agencies have joined the award winning initiative ‘Phones against Corruption.’
A one-day workshop on the initiative was held by the Finance Department and United Nations Development Programme in Port Moresby yesterday.
“The expansion to include 44 state agencies is a considerable undertaking by the department,” said Finance Secretary Dr Ken Ngangan, pictured.
“We are serious about curbing corruption within the finance management sector.
“We will take strict action in compliance with the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA),” he said.
In 2014, Finance and UNDP trialed the ‘Phones Against Corruption,’ initiative, an SMS-based reporting mechanism that allowed users to anonymously report corrupt activities.
It has so far helped uncover 500-plus cases, 70 of which are in various stages of investigation, 10 have been completed, five are before the courts and two have been convicted.
The ‘Phones Against Corruption’ concept uses free-of-charge text messages to the Digicel number ‘16321’.
The identity of the user is protected as the mobile numbers are encrypted and only the report is sent to Finance, therefore guaranteeing full anonymity to concerned people reporting cases.
UNDP deputy resident representative, Tracey Vienings said: “UNDP was proud to be involved with this bold and innovative approach to ensure vital services reached the people.”
“Promoting good governance, upholding the rule of law and combating corruption are key features of the work of UNDP.”