INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Kathmandu, July 20
The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority caught 200 persons red-handed with the bribe money they
received from service-seekers in fiscal 2018-19 compared to 154 in fiscal 2017-18.
It is the highest number of arrests made by the
anti-graft body in a year
According to the CIAA, it conducted 142 sting operations in 2018- 19 leading to arrest and prosecution of 200 persons
Of them, 161 were government employees while the others were elected/nominated office-bearers and middlemen
Of the government employees booked by the CIAA on graft charges, 63 were from the administration, 53 from technical field, 33 from Nepal
Police and two from community schools.
The arrestees are from office assistants to special class officers.
The CIAA conducted 27 sting
operations in the agencies under the Ministry of Home Affairs, 26 under the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration, 22 under
the Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation, 11 under the Ministry of Forests and Environment, nine under the
Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, eight under the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, seven each under the
Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, five under the Ministry of
Finance, four under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, three each under the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development
and the Ministry of Health and Population and nine under other ministries and the anti-graft body itself.
Government employees caught in the
act of receiving cash in bribe range from junior officer to joint secretary.
Persons involved in bribery were charged under sub-section (1)
of section 3 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, in the case of government employees, while others working as their accomplices faced
action as per sub-section (2) of section 3 of the same law.
The anti-graft body said one person was arrested with bribe on an average of
2.07 working days during the fiscal 2018-19.
&The CIAA has stepped up sting operation by strengthening its information analysis unit to
pursue reform, transparency and good governance in the public service sector of the government,& said a report published by the anti-graft
body yesterday.
Increasing involvement of government employees in bribery cases every year indicates that the CIAA should be more vigilant
to curb corruption and bribery in the public sector, it stated.
The report also referred to a recent study on the ‘Status of Corruption
and Good Governance in Nepal, 2019& conducted by the CIAA on measures to be taken against corruption in government offices
The study has stressed the need to incorporate the subjects of good governance and anti-corruption into school and university curriculum
If these subjects are included in the curriculum, the country can produce capable and honest human resources in future
It will also help instil a sense of integrity and accountability in citizens.
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