When corruption became a daily ritual

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When Transparency International (TI) placed Fiji in 55th position with a score of four points (ten being the least corrupt) in its 2005 Corruption Perception Index, no one in that country was surprised.

In fact, some businesses felt that it should have scored less than one, for corruption was not only endemic but also had the tacit approval of some ‘higher ups.’

Four years earlier, TI had said in a detailed country report on Fiji that public officials including those in ministries, government agencies and public sector companies were imposing and demanding ‘extra levies’ for provision of services which they were expected to deliver in the normal course of their duties.

“This is prevalent in government bodies with powers to issue permits such as passports, work permits, driving licenses and vehicles certifications. A culture is fast filtering into the public officials’ work ethics that their powers as sole agents for such services may be abused at will without recourse from applicants,” the report said.

While corruption was prolific, those parting with cash or kind as bribes were reluctant to complain for fear of facing stringent obstacles in the future.

Corruption culture

A story was told in Suva of three immigration officials who were suspended some years ago on corruption charges. The allegations could not be substantiated and hence they were reinstated. The officials then began to harass clients by deliberately delaying processing their applications, seeking unnecessary clarifications and eventually declining them.

“That was indeed the norm; a culture of corruption had been in-built into the system and had encircled even the echelons of government offices and public companies,” says Aiyaz Sayed Khaiyum, Fiji’s Attorney General and Anti-Corruption Minister.

Graft was one of the major accusations against former Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase and his government that led to the overthrow of both on December 5, 2009.

Interim Prime Minister Commodore Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama went after tainted officials saying that there would be zero tolerance on corruption.

“The government established the ‘Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption’ (FICAC) in April 2007 to investigate acts of corruption by public servants, irrespective of their rank, status or income. After all, corruption at any level must be wiped out. It was amazing to observe the extent to which this cancer had crept into the public administrative system,” Mr Khaiyum said. 

With the need to accord the Commission independence and appropriate powers pronounced, the government enforced ‘The Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption Promulgation 2007’ (Corruption Promulgation) and ‘The Prevention of Bribery Promulgation 2007’ (Bribery Promulgation).

Mr Khaiyum said the Commission had the authority to investigate any official at any time and expose those found guilty to the public.

“It was also charged with the task of counselling public servants to resist from demanding and receiving bribes and educating the community on the evils of corruption and creating a strong anti-corruption environment,” he said.

According to its mission statement, “the FICAC is committed to effectively combating corruption in order to promote transparency and accountability for the attainment of zero tolerance of corruption, set the foundation for good governance and create sustainable development for the benefit of all citizens of Fiji.”

Fiji belongs to the Conference of States Parties to the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), which encourages assistance between developed and developing countries in the fight against corruption.

Public complaints

Encouraged by the government’s firm stand, an increasing number of people seeking public services had either refused to bribe officials, warning them against the practice or went directly to the FICAC and lodged complaints.

The Labasa Magistrate’s Court found a public servant guilty of graft in December 2008 and sentenced him to 18 months in prison, creating the first milestone of achievement for the FICAC.

The defendant pleaded guilty to six counts of ‘Larceny by servant.’

‘Larceny by Servant’ denotes the unlawful taking and carrying away of the property of another with intent to deprive the owner of its use or to appropriate it to the use of the perpetrator or that of someone else.

During the first 18 months of its inception (up to December 2008), the Commission had reportedly received 4291 complaints, of which 1521 were referred to other government departments.

It is understood that the Commission has charged 35 public servants and two businessmen and that their cases are in courts.

It has also successfully resolved 492 cases through mediation.

“While this nuisance has gone from the top officials of ministries and government bodies and from the top management of public sector companies, we are under no illusion that the problem has been eradicated.

“We may have just scratched the surface and our campaign against corruption will continue unabated. We want a Fiji that is above graft,” Mr Khaiyum said.

Although strapped for cash, the government had allocated $F 5.4 million in its 2009 budget to fight corruption. A similar amount will be available in the next year’s budget as well.