The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) says institutions which are proactive in provision of services in the public sector are a giant step in the fight against corruption in Malawi.

The remarks were made by Ezilon Kasoka the ACB’s Senior Corruption Prevention Officer and its Prevention Officer Lydia Kawiya Phiri during a weeklong orientation of the National Local Government Finance Committee (NLGFC) Internal Integrity Committee (IIC) recently at Kabumba Hotel in Salima.

‘Cases of corruption are painful to this country. However, we should not give up. The IIC at the NLGFC has its role to play and it must do so well to lead by example in the expected delivery of its mandate, by having a strong performance driven upright institution’.

Speaking during the function, Director of Infrastructure and Economic Development, Paul Chipeta, appealed to the delegates to utilize the orientation for the benefit of the NLGFC as an institution and the councils at large saying the session had come at the right moment in the fight against corruption at the NLGFC.

‘The weight of responsibility on your shoulders is so much. The weight of expectation is huge. That is why management has committed to this initiative the resources it needs and the management has physically demonstrated that through physical attendance’, said Chipeta.

The IIC core mandates includes development of corruption prevention policies and procedures; inculcate ethics in members of staff through codes of conduct and training; lead in the review of systems and procedures; and receive suspected corruption reports, conduct preliminary investigations and recommends appropriate action to management or refer to appropriate external agencies.

The orientation covered corruption prevention initiatives at the NLGFC, tools in the fight against corruption in Malawi, whistle blowing and corruption reporting and investigation, ethics and integrity, among others.