07 Mar 2013

 

Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development has launched a toll-free hotline to enable whistleblowers to report graft.

Minister Peter Siele said it was important to provide  employees and the public with the means to unanimously report fraud, criminal activity and other irregularities in the workplace.

Speaking at the launch of the Anti-corruption Toll-Free Hotline in Gaborone yesterday, the Minister said it was an innovative crime prevention and detection service which acknowledges the peculiarity of specific business environments.

The facility is equipped to receive confidential information by telephone or cellphone.

“Dishonesty, fraud, corruption and other inappropriate behaviour in the workplace must be seriously dealt with,” Mr Siele said, adding that that it does not matter whether the perpetrator is an employee, customer, supplier, manager or shareholder.

He admitted that his ministry was leading in corruption due to the type of work performed by its officers such as procurement and tendering processes.

These resulted in the high number of corruption cases in the ministry thus the importance of establishing an anti-corruption unit in the ministry.

Mr Siele noted that collusion by some council staff and suppliers with the intention to defraud government was the most common corrupt practice in his ministry.

This occurred mainly in motor vehicle repairs and maintenance, and purchase of materials, especially building materials.

Minister Siele stated that incidences of corruption could be prevented through the activities of the Anti-Corruption Prevention Committees as they were actively involved in risk assessment and processes auditing.

The committees also provided education through various means such as presentations in meetings, brochures, newsletters and through the media.

Deputy director of DCEC, Mrs Botlhale Makgekgenene, applauded the ministry for setting up an Anti-Corruption Toll Free Hotline as it would enable the ministry to develop a robust relationship with its stakeholders. Ends