EAST AFRICA ON ALERT! Deputy IGG Sounds War Drums, Demands United Regional Crackdown On Rampant Corruption

The Deputy Inspector General of Government, Dr. Patricia Achan Okiria, has urged African countries to deliberately embrace the pillars of cooperation, collaboration and coordination if the fight against corruption is to yield meaningful and lasting results.

Dr. Okiria argued that the anti-corruption fight calls for more than isolated efforts but a united front, with people and institutions moving with a shared purpose and bound by a common vision that rises above borders.

“Fighting corruption requires concerted efforts. Regional cooperation, collaboration and coordination. Only through such collective resolve can we overcome the invisible lines that divide us, lines which, if left unchallenged, risk undermining the very progress we strive to achieve,” Dr. Okiria said.

Regional coordinated anti-corruption efforts help to close cross-border escape routes, improves information sharing, enables joint investigations, strengthens asset recovery, disrupts organized corruption networks, and promotes regional stability and economic growth.

Regional frameworks allow countries to exchange intelligence on suspects, financial transactions, and criminal networks.

She made the remarks while meeting representatives from the Transparency International (TI) Chapters implementing the Stopping Impunity for Corruption through Enhanced Accountability (SICEA) project which aims to build communities of practice in Africa to promote anti-corruption reforms.

The TI representatives were on a learning visit on the right to information management practices.

Uganda, Dr. Okiria said, has the Inter Agency Forum (IAF) with an Information sharing strategy which ensures that data flows efficiently, securely and lawfully between anti-corruption institutions that are responsible for preventing, detecting, and prosecuting corruption.

“The forum meets every quarter to update each other on the status of cases they are handling. As IG we also belong to a tripartite inclusive of OAG and PPDA where we work together and share information in respect to cases we are handling,” she said.

The right to information plays a crucial role in strengthening investigations. It goes beyond just access to documents but directly shapes how effective, transparent, and fair investigations can be.

Paul Banoba, Africa Regional Advisor at Transparency International said: “I commended the IG for its bold strategies in fighting corruption. Its best practices including information sharing offers critical lessons on how to eliminate the vice”.

SICEA project targets 11 countries in Africa namely; the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Togo, Uganda and Zambia.