Ugandan Judge Duncan Gaswaga will head Seychelles' first Anti-Corruption Commission.
Seychelles President, HE James Michel\r\nhas appointed the five members of the Anti-Corruption Commission, the first\r\nsuch body in the island nation, State House announced on Friday, August 5, 2016.
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Ugandan Judge, Hon. Justice Duncan\r\nGaswaga was named the commission’s chairperson. State House said the appointments by\r\nthe president "follows recommendations received this week from the Constitutional\r\nAppointments Authority.”
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Hon. Justice Gaswaga -- currently a\r\nHigh Court Judge in Uganda -- is not new to the island nation. He served the\r\nJudiciary of Seychelles as a Magistrate and as a Supreme Court Judge between\r\n2002 and 2013.
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The other members of the\r\nAnti-Corruption Commission are all Seychells nationals.
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Daniel Belle, a lawyer, has been\r\nappointed Vice-Chairperson. The three other members are Hardy Lucas – a\r\nbusinessman, lawyer Priscille Chetty and Marie-Claire Elizabeth, who has\r\nretired from a long journalism career.
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The Constitutional Appointments\r\nAuthority (CAA) says the chairperson, vice chairperson and commissioners’\r\npositions were advertised citing the desired qualifications and experience,\r\nadding that all applicants were interviewed by a panel.
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The decision to create an\r\nAnti-Corruption Commission was announced by the President in his State of the\r\nNation Address in February.
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"We have taken harsh measures where\r\ncorruption existed. The commission which we are setting up will help us\r\nstrengthen our actions against corruption,” Michel said in his address.
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The issue of corruption was also\r\nraised by opposition parties in the last presidential election in December.
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The Anti-Corruption Commission, which\r\nis part of the government’s decision to step up the fight against graft, was\r\nendorsed by the National Assembly in April.
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Once fully operational the body will\r\nbe tasked with receiving complaints and also investigating, detecting and\r\npreventing practices linked to corruption in both the public and private\r\nsector.
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The commission will have its own\r\nstructure, budget, and taskforce which will conduct investigations.
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In the press statement issued on Friday\r\n5, August 2016, State House said one the first tasks ahead for the newly named\r\nmembers is to recommend the appointment of a chief executive to the President.
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The Chief Executive, the statement\r\nadds, "will be responsible for implementing the decisions of the Commission,\r\nand for the effective management of the affairs of the Commission.
This article was published by the Seychelles News Agency on August 8, 2016
Posted 8th, August 2016
