Is asset recovery answer to corruption?(VIDEO)
Despite a surge in anti-corruption crusades, the damage has deepened in public offices, widening social inequality and ruining service delivery. Actors are now pushing for asset recovery from culprits as the solution. However, the Inspectorate of Government (IGG) is pessimistic.
With deepening cases of wrongdoing in public offices, and supporting players unable to wrestle the stubborn culprits, stakeholders are pushing for recovery of tax payers lost resource
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The Deputy Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny Dollo says, “You see it is very possible for people to know that corruption, any form of theft or any form of crime is not a worthy enterprise when the punishment is very strong when it is robust, when it leaves no stone unturned, when it sends out clear signal to those who have not yet done it that if I have worked for thirty years and I’m left with five, why should destroy them all.”
The actors argue, sentencing those involved to jail terms as has been prioritized does not deter criminals. They demand illicit wealth withdrawn for public gain.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyXwochGsus
The Criminal Sanctions Advisor at Strengthening Uganda’s Anti-corruption Reasponse, Technical Advisory Facility, SUGAR TAF Tito Byenkya notes, “What drives people to engage in corruption is the desire to acquire to get illicit gains and get them very fast, hide them away and for them they don’t think going to prison is deterrent enough, they think of prison more as a business risk”
For asset recovery to be undertaken, the process involves’; freezing of assets till conclusive decision, and restraining the culprit or those acting in their favor from access and sale. This therefore calls for efficient resource in Human capital and technology is decisive to rein in on syndicate .
The IGG however notes that for recovery of Asset to succeed, it must reconcile with civil procedure.
The IGG Irene Mulyagonja explains “we have a regime detailed in the anti-corruption act meaning you must first have a person convicted in the criminal court then after that conviction you recover assets so we want one where you don’t have to prove a matter beyond reasonable doubt but on the balance of probabilities you can collect stolen assets from them because they cannot prove how they came to have them”
The anti-corruption actors also benchmarks its survival on other institutions working in harmony.
Byenkya advises that for efficient recovery process “it must be predicated on quality investigations, the investigative institutions whether with the IG, DPP, the Financial Intelligence Authority must have the ability skill and knowledge to trace the money if its money, to trace assets. To identify them, apportion them, if the money has already been utilized, what the money has been used for”
Legislators say citizens’ vigilance, and non-state actors are essential to aid the process of recovery.
MP Kinkizi West James Kaberuka , “Every period, the IGG gives all leaders chance to details of where their properties are and they follow to find out the credibility of the information but the problem is I have not seen one whose property has been confiscated we are instead nurturing corruption”
Legislators however caution., managing public expectation and participation is central in ensuring positive outcome.
The MP Buikwe South, David Mutebi says, “Where the wealth of such a person I, you cannot assume that my son or my daughter or wife will have property in her name when it is not reflected in what they do. Definitely they can afford to trace the source of that wealth and on the basis of that you can get hold of that culprit of suspect”
However, without political will, all efforts are likely to be dealt a blow.
The fight against corruption is embedded in the will to have corruption nippled because in Uganda the culture of corruption has taken root. The issue is not whether they are going to be reprimanded but do we know that corruption is wrong or its now a virtue, if you are a beneficiary of corruption do you fight it that’s why you find that corruption has taken root”
The Inspectorate of Government (IGG) established in 1988 to rein in on abuse of public office has not seen enough yield. The recently established State House Anti-Corruption Unit, various interventions by court, legislature among other actors too, leave a lot to be desired. Can asset recovery be the ultimate answer?
