Anti-Corruption Authority files away complaint against government service over cover-up
The Independent Anti-Corruption Authority has closed the case of an anonymous complaint against a government service, determining that there is no evidence of corruption.
Filing away anonymous complaint of cover-up in government service
The Independent Anti-Corruption Authority has concluded the preliminary examination of an anonymous complaint against a government service, filing away the case. According to Philenews, the complaint concerned allegations of cover-up of incidents and omissions by officials in the performance of their duties.
According to the Authority's official announcement, the complaint contained two main allegations. First, that a service manager gave instructions to subordinates not to proceed with reporting a private individual alleged to have acted unlawfully during an inspection. Second, that a member of the service committed an unlawful act against a private individual and senior officials, having been informed of it, took no further action.
The Authority conducted a Preliminary Examination on the basis of Regulation 14(2)(a) of the Regulations on the Establishment and Operation of the Independent Anti-Corruption Authority of 2022 (K.D.P. 483/2022). During the examination, it was found that the allegations do not fall within the definition of acts of corruption as defined in Article 2 of Law N.19(I)/2022.
Four factors led to the decision to file away the case. First, sufficient evidence was not produced to justify further investigation or to establish a possible criminal offence. Second, the anonymous nature of the complaint made it impossible to communicate with the complainant to gather additional evidence. Third, a person referenced in the complaint and with whom the Authority made contact refused to give testimony regarding the described events. Fourth, the same incidents had already been investigated by the competent Ministry, which concluded that nothing objectionable had emerged.
The Authority noted that, owing to the prior ministerial investigation and the inability to confirm the allegations through testimony, the complaint does not fall within its remit. On the basis of Regulations 14(2)(a) and 14(3), the process of further investigation was terminated and the case was filed away.
The announcement was issued in accordance with legislation protecting personal data, with the aim of informing the person who had submitted the complaint of developments in the case.
Source: Philenews