More management referrals reflect increased willingness to confront graft problem
2002-12-12
The ICAC Commissioner, Mr Ambrose Lee Siu-kwong, said today (Thursday) that the ICAC had in recent years received more corruption reports referred by the management in the public and private sectors, indicating their growing willingness to confront the pr oblem, and to co-operate with the anti corruption body.
According to Mr Lee, the number of management referrals had risen by 67 per cent from 268 in 1997 to 448 last year.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of the Leadership Forum 2002 –'96 Ethical Challenges for Business and Government Leaders at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Mr Lee called upon leaders in the government and business sectors to join hands with the ICAC to maintain a corruption-free civil service and a level playing field in Hong Kong.
The forum was jointly organised by the Civil Service Bureau and the ICAC in collaboration with six leading chambers of commerce.
The ICAC Commissioner urged both government and business leaders to remain vigilant to the problem of corruption as rapid changes and organisation restructuring might have added challenges to the ethical culture.
He pointed out that additional responsibilities and authority given to middle management and supervisors in pursuit of efficiency might make them more vulnerable to succumb to temptation, while people might be more easily tempted to cut corners amidst the economic downturn.
However, Mr Lee stressed that corruption in Hong Kong remained largely under control. The ICAC received 4,076 corruption reports in the first 11 months of this year, edging down one per cent from last year’s 4,120.
The Commissioner also revealed that in the last five years, corruption reports concerning the private sector persistently took up a major share –'96 around 51 to 57 per cent of the total.
During the period, 1,327 persons were prosecuted in private sector cases. Of them, about 34 per cent or 446 persons were managers, administrators or professionals. In the government sector, about eight per cent of the 238 civil servants prosecuted were s enior staff or professionals.
Mr Lee also unveiled the Commission’s plans to conduct a new round of visits to government departments to help them enhance corruption prevention measures, following a Civil Service Integrity Programme launched three years ago.
For the business sector and public bodies, the ICAC would contact all listed and large companies to strengthen their ethics programmes and reinforce corporate governance training for company directors and students in business schools.
The Commission would continue to develop training materials and modules for different levels of civil servants and company employees to enhance their awareness in corruption prevention, said Mr Lee.
At today’s conference, the Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, delivered an opening address before officiating at a signing ceremony with the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Joseph Wong Wing-ping; ICAC Commissioner, Mr Ambrose Lee Siu-kwong; Chairman of the Hon g Kong Ethics Development Advisory Committee, Dr Robin Y H Chan, and representatives of six chambers of commerce.
The ceremony signifies the on-going commitment of government and business leaders in upholding an ethical culture in both sectors.
The half-day Forum provided a platform for about 800 senior government officials, chairmen and CEOs of business organisations and public bodies, heads of commerce and trade associations and academics to examine and share experiences of the ethical challen ges they faced.
The Forum also featured keynote speeches by Mr Andrew Podger, Public Service Commissioner of the Australian Public Service Commission; Professor Lynn Sharp Paine, John G. McLean Professor of Business Administration of Harvard Business School, and Senior C ounsel Mr Anthony Neoh.
According to Mr Lee, the number of management referrals had risen by 67 per cent from 268 in 1997 to 448 last year.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of the Leadership Forum 2002 –'96 Ethical Challenges for Business and Government Leaders at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Mr Lee called upon leaders in the government and business sectors to join hands with the ICAC to maintain a corruption-free civil service and a level playing field in Hong Kong.
The forum was jointly organised by the Civil Service Bureau and the ICAC in collaboration with six leading chambers of commerce.
The ICAC Commissioner urged both government and business leaders to remain vigilant to the problem of corruption as rapid changes and organisation restructuring might have added challenges to the ethical culture.
He pointed out that additional responsibilities and authority given to middle management and supervisors in pursuit of efficiency might make them more vulnerable to succumb to temptation, while people might be more easily tempted to cut corners amidst the economic downturn.
However, Mr Lee stressed that corruption in Hong Kong remained largely under control. The ICAC received 4,076 corruption reports in the first 11 months of this year, edging down one per cent from last year’s 4,120.
The Commissioner also revealed that in the last five years, corruption reports concerning the private sector persistently took up a major share –'96 around 51 to 57 per cent of the total.
During the period, 1,327 persons were prosecuted in private sector cases. Of them, about 34 per cent or 446 persons were managers, administrators or professionals. In the government sector, about eight per cent of the 238 civil servants prosecuted were s enior staff or professionals.
Mr Lee also unveiled the Commission’s plans to conduct a new round of visits to government departments to help them enhance corruption prevention measures, following a Civil Service Integrity Programme launched three years ago.
For the business sector and public bodies, the ICAC would contact all listed and large companies to strengthen their ethics programmes and reinforce corporate governance training for company directors and students in business schools.
The Commission would continue to develop training materials and modules for different levels of civil servants and company employees to enhance their awareness in corruption prevention, said Mr Lee.
At today’s conference, the Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, delivered an opening address before officiating at a signing ceremony with the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Joseph Wong Wing-ping; ICAC Commissioner, Mr Ambrose Lee Siu-kwong; Chairman of the Hon g Kong Ethics Development Advisory Committee, Dr Robin Y H Chan, and representatives of six chambers of commerce.
The ceremony signifies the on-going commitment of government and business leaders in upholding an ethical culture in both sectors.
The half-day Forum provided a platform for about 800 senior government officials, chairmen and CEOs of business organisations and public bodies, heads of commerce and trade associations and academics to examine and share experiences of the ethical challen ges they faced.
The Forum also featured keynote speeches by Mr Andrew Podger, Public Service Commissioner of the Australian Public Service Commission; Professor Lynn Sharp Paine, John G. McLean Professor of Business Administration of Harvard Business School, and Senior C ounsel Mr Anthony Neoh.