ICAC continues to stride forward in upholding fairness for future generations
2015-6-24
Despite various obstacles and challenges in the past 40 years, the ICAC has been staunchly keeping its feet on the anti-graft front line through the time-tested holistic strategy of law enforcement, corruption prevention and community education that has served as a sample reference for many countries, according to the 2014 ICAC Annual Report.
Tabling the report at the Legislative Council today (Wednesday), Advisory Committee on Corruption member and legislator Mr Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen said the hard work of the ICAC in the past four decades had brought enormous changes to the community, turning Hong Kong from a city afflicted with corruption to one of the cleanest places in the world.
In 2014 which marked the ICAC’s 40th Anniversary, the Commission received a total of 2,362 corruption complaints, representing a drop of 11 per cent from 2013. Private sector complaints took up 63 per cent of the total complaints, while government departments and public bodies accounted for 30 per cent and 7 per cent respectively.
In the Commissioner’s Review of the annual report, ICAC Commissioner Mr Simon Peh Yun-lu noted that corruption complaint statistics were often characterised by their fluctuations. Despite a drop in corruption complaints, there was an enhancement in the Operations Department’s investigation work in both quantity and quality.
In 2014, a total of 223 persons were prosecuted, representing an increase of three per cent when compared with the 2013 figure. The person-based conviction rate was 85 per cent, representing an increase of seven percentage points compared with that of 2013.
While certain high-profile investigations and prosecutions involving former or incumbent senior government officials had attracted extensive media coverage in recent years, they were only isolated incidents and there was no evidence of a relapse in corruption situation or a resurgence of syndicated corruption, the Commissioner noted.
This was backed by findings of the 2014 ICAC Annual Survey, which found that only 1.5 per cent of the respondents had personally come across corruption in the past 12 months.
On the preventive front, the Corruption Prevention Department (CPD) completed 68 assignment studies prioritised according to the level of corruption risks, public concern and public safety. Of these studies, 36 were related to government departments, and 32 concerned public bodies and other non-governmental organisations.
Further to its efforts to enhance governance of policy bureaux and government departments, the CPD also issued a set of revised sample codes of conduct for public bodies and continued to help examine the internal rules of these organisations.
In 2014, preventive advice was also given to private organisations on 460 occasions on their requests. As procurement remained one of the most corruption-prone areas, the CPD produced a best practice checklist to assist managerial staff in the public and private sectors to guard against corruption in procurement.
In fostering an ethical culture and enlisting public support, the Community Relations Department (CRD) maintained close ties with the public through face-to-face contacts. Over 680,000 people were reached in 2014 through a series of district activities jointly hosted with the 18 District Councils.
To tie-in with the Commission’s 40th Anniversary, the CRD held the ICAC Open Day to allow members of the public to tour various facilities, while the ICAC Investigators 2014 drama series, based on real past cases, was premiered at the Hong Kong International Film Festival and broadcast on television.
To instil ethical values in young people, a wide range of educational initiatives including the ICAC Ambassador Programme, a youth integrity project, and a youth summit reaching 6,600 local, Mainland and overseas students from 55 tertiary institutions from around the world.
Moreover, interactive drama performances featuring probity messages were arranged for secondary schools, while a new Gee-dor-dor cartoon was broadcast on TV to promote positive values among young kids.
Looking ahead, the Commissioner said the ICAC, armed with its professional graft fighters, an effective anti-corruption strategy and stanch public support, would continue to stride forward to build a clean and fair society for future generations.
Tabling the report at the Legislative Council today (Wednesday), Advisory Committee on Corruption member and legislator Mr Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen said the hard work of the ICAC in the past four decades had brought enormous changes to the community, turning Hong Kong from a city afflicted with corruption to one of the cleanest places in the world.
In 2014 which marked the ICAC’s 40th Anniversary, the Commission received a total of 2,362 corruption complaints, representing a drop of 11 per cent from 2013. Private sector complaints took up 63 per cent of the total complaints, while government departments and public bodies accounted for 30 per cent and 7 per cent respectively.
In the Commissioner’s Review of the annual report, ICAC Commissioner Mr Simon Peh Yun-lu noted that corruption complaint statistics were often characterised by their fluctuations. Despite a drop in corruption complaints, there was an enhancement in the Operations Department’s investigation work in both quantity and quality.
In 2014, a total of 223 persons were prosecuted, representing an increase of three per cent when compared with the 2013 figure. The person-based conviction rate was 85 per cent, representing an increase of seven percentage points compared with that of 2013.
While certain high-profile investigations and prosecutions involving former or incumbent senior government officials had attracted extensive media coverage in recent years, they were only isolated incidents and there was no evidence of a relapse in corruption situation or a resurgence of syndicated corruption, the Commissioner noted.
This was backed by findings of the 2014 ICAC Annual Survey, which found that only 1.5 per cent of the respondents had personally come across corruption in the past 12 months.
On the preventive front, the Corruption Prevention Department (CPD) completed 68 assignment studies prioritised according to the level of corruption risks, public concern and public safety. Of these studies, 36 were related to government departments, and 32 concerned public bodies and other non-governmental organisations.
Further to its efforts to enhance governance of policy bureaux and government departments, the CPD also issued a set of revised sample codes of conduct for public bodies and continued to help examine the internal rules of these organisations.
In 2014, preventive advice was also given to private organisations on 460 occasions on their requests. As procurement remained one of the most corruption-prone areas, the CPD produced a best practice checklist to assist managerial staff in the public and private sectors to guard against corruption in procurement.
In fostering an ethical culture and enlisting public support, the Community Relations Department (CRD) maintained close ties with the public through face-to-face contacts. Over 680,000 people were reached in 2014 through a series of district activities jointly hosted with the 18 District Councils.
To tie-in with the Commission’s 40th Anniversary, the CRD held the ICAC Open Day to allow members of the public to tour various facilities, while the ICAC Investigators 2014 drama series, based on real past cases, was premiered at the Hong Kong International Film Festival and broadcast on television.
To instil ethical values in young people, a wide range of educational initiatives including the ICAC Ambassador Programme, a youth integrity project, and a youth summit reaching 6,600 local, Mainland and overseas students from 55 tertiary institutions from around the world.
Moreover, interactive drama performances featuring probity messages were arranged for secondary schools, while a new Gee-dor-dor cartoon was broadcast on TV to promote positive values among young kids.
Looking ahead, the Commissioner said the ICAC, armed with its professional graft fighters, an effective anti-corruption strategy and stanch public support, would continue to stride forward to build a clean and fair society for future generations.