03 Jun 2015

A senior official with the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) has lauded some institutions for developing measures to curb fraud and corruption in the workplace.

Giving a keynote address at the launch of a fraud and ethics hotline of the Botswana Investment and Trade Centre (BITC) in Gaborone on June 2, Mr Kelennetse Moloko acknowledged the growing departure from a past where every sector of society and public bodies left the fight against corruption and related ills to the DCEC alone.

He noted that public bodies, including parastatals, had of late joined the national call to fight corruption and fraud by setting up whistle-blowing mechanisms such as hotlines.  He advised that fraud and corruption should be seen as business risks that warrant collaborative effort between the DCEC and organisations.

He said the BITC is a beneficiary of the DCEC’s anti-corruption advisory services, which entail examination of organisational procedures and practices in a bid to identify and seal corruption loopholes. 

Mr Moloko disclosed that the BITC hotline resulted from a number of recommendations by the DCEC, and added that it will invariably address issues of fraud, ethical violations and other associated ills.

“By launching the fraud and ethics hotline, BITC is showing commitment to zero tolerance for corruption and embraces principles of good governance. 

One would note that BITC as the face of Botswana in the promotion of foreign investment and other business interests has a responsibility to sell Botswana’s zero tolerance for corruption to potential investors,” he said.

He further told the audience that a hotline affords staff and stakeholders an opportunity to safely report wrongful and unethical conduct as it assures whistleblowers of protection. Mr Moloko advised that it is important that action should be seen to have been taken after each whistleblower report. 

He further counseled that internal audit and risk management functions should be integrated into the tool to realise the much needed synergy. He urged the management of BITC to pay attention to indicators of fraud and corruption, and work towards reversing the situation.

He underscored the importance of promoting organisational integrity to create an environment that supports ethically sound behaviour and a sense of shared accountability among employees.

The BITC Hotline call centre numbers are: Orange 1144, Mascom 71119793 and BTC/Bemobile 0800 600 644. 

The email is bitc@tip-offs.com while the website is wwww.tip-offs.com. Deloitte, which has partnered BITC, will manage the call centre. Ends