Anti-graft work important to HK’s overall development, survey finds
2015-4-10
The vast majority of the community recognised the significance of anti-corruption work to the overall development of Hong Kong and vouched their support for the ICAC, the latest opinion survey of the Commission revealed.
According to the 2014 ICAC annual survey, 98.7 per cent of the respondents agreed that keeping Hong Kong free of corruption was important to the territory’s overall development.
The survey also found that 96.9 per cent of respondents said the ICAC deserved their support as the anti-graft agency had been able to maintain a corruption-free society and uphold fairness and justice.
Moreover, 80.6 per cent considered ICAC’s anti-corruption work very effective or quite effective.
Through face-to-face household interviews of about 1,500 randomly selected citizens, the survey was conducted by an independent polling agency between July and September in 2014 to gauge the public’s perception and attitude towards corruption.
The survey also found that the community was highly intolerant of corruption. On a scale of 0-10, with 0 representing total rejection and 10 representing total tolerance of corruption, a mean score of 1.0 was registered.
On the perceived prevalence of corruption, 64.5 per cent of respondents considered corruption uncommon in Hong Kong. A relative minority of 27.6 per cent held the opposite view, mostly attributed to knowledge they gained from media.
Meanwhile, 61.5 per cent expected the corruption situation would remain stable in the coming year, while 20.1 per cent anticipated graft cases would increase.
Notwithstanding the pessimism expressed by some respondents, when asked about their actual experience, the vast majority or 97.8 per cent of the citizens polled said they had not come across corruption in the past 12 months.
“According to ICAC’s overall analysis, the corruption situation in Hong Kong remains stable and is effectively under control. Public perception may have been affected by a few ICAC cases that attracted extensive media coverage in the past year,” said an ICAC spokesman.
“Rather than a sign of an increased level of corruption, those prosecutions in fact demonstrate that Hong Kong has a robust anti-corruption regime. The ICAC is determined to combat corruption without fear or favour, regardless of the background, status and position of the people involved.”
The survey also found that 76.7 per cent of the respondents were ready to report corruption to the ICAC should they come across it. Most of those who indicated not willing to report said they had no time.
The ICAC spokesman assured that the reporting procedures are not complicated and there are various channels, including a 24-hour hotline and a postal address, for reporting corruption. Those who wish to report graft could also do so in person at the ICAC Headquarters in North Point or one of the seven Regional Offices across the territory. All complaints will be kept in strict confidence.
To help the Commission map out appropriate educational strategies, the ICAC annual survey also gauged respondents’ concerns over the corruption problems in various sectors. Among the respondents, 27.9 per cent considered corruption in the government officials/civil servants worthy of concern, followed by real estate (12.5 per cent), and the construction and engineering industry (12.0 per cent).
To address these sentiments, the ICAC would continue to provide integrity training to civil servants. In 2014, over 23,000 civil servants had attended face-to-face training offered by the Commission. Briefings were also conducted for Principal Officials and officials appointed under the political appointment system, the spokesman noted.
In addition, a corruption prevention training package was produced in collaboration with the construction industry to raise the awareness of practitioners and stakeholders of the sector.
“A corruption prevention guide will be launched later this year to provide guidance on probity requirements to the business sector when dealing with public officers,” the spokesman added.
According to the 2014 ICAC annual survey, 98.7 per cent of the respondents agreed that keeping Hong Kong free of corruption was important to the territory’s overall development.
The survey also found that 96.9 per cent of respondents said the ICAC deserved their support as the anti-graft agency had been able to maintain a corruption-free society and uphold fairness and justice.
Moreover, 80.6 per cent considered ICAC’s anti-corruption work very effective or quite effective.
Through face-to-face household interviews of about 1,500 randomly selected citizens, the survey was conducted by an independent polling agency between July and September in 2014 to gauge the public’s perception and attitude towards corruption.
The survey also found that the community was highly intolerant of corruption. On a scale of 0-10, with 0 representing total rejection and 10 representing total tolerance of corruption, a mean score of 1.0 was registered.
On the perceived prevalence of corruption, 64.5 per cent of respondents considered corruption uncommon in Hong Kong. A relative minority of 27.6 per cent held the opposite view, mostly attributed to knowledge they gained from media.
Meanwhile, 61.5 per cent expected the corruption situation would remain stable in the coming year, while 20.1 per cent anticipated graft cases would increase.
Notwithstanding the pessimism expressed by some respondents, when asked about their actual experience, the vast majority or 97.8 per cent of the citizens polled said they had not come across corruption in the past 12 months.
“According to ICAC’s overall analysis, the corruption situation in Hong Kong remains stable and is effectively under control. Public perception may have been affected by a few ICAC cases that attracted extensive media coverage in the past year,” said an ICAC spokesman.
“Rather than a sign of an increased level of corruption, those prosecutions in fact demonstrate that Hong Kong has a robust anti-corruption regime. The ICAC is determined to combat corruption without fear or favour, regardless of the background, status and position of the people involved.”
The survey also found that 76.7 per cent of the respondents were ready to report corruption to the ICAC should they come across it. Most of those who indicated not willing to report said they had no time.
The ICAC spokesman assured that the reporting procedures are not complicated and there are various channels, including a 24-hour hotline and a postal address, for reporting corruption. Those who wish to report graft could also do so in person at the ICAC Headquarters in North Point or one of the seven Regional Offices across the territory. All complaints will be kept in strict confidence.
To help the Commission map out appropriate educational strategies, the ICAC annual survey also gauged respondents’ concerns over the corruption problems in various sectors. Among the respondents, 27.9 per cent considered corruption in the government officials/civil servants worthy of concern, followed by real estate (12.5 per cent), and the construction and engineering industry (12.0 per cent).
To address these sentiments, the ICAC would continue to provide integrity training to civil servants. In 2014, over 23,000 civil servants had attended face-to-face training offered by the Commission. Briefings were also conducted for Principal Officials and officials appointed under the political appointment system, the spokesman noted.
In addition, a corruption prevention training package was produced in collaboration with the construction industry to raise the awareness of practitioners and stakeholders of the sector.
“A corruption prevention guide will be launched later this year to provide guidance on probity requirements to the business sector when dealing with public officers,” the spokesman added.