Deputy Secretary to the President and Cabinet, Dr. Janet Banda has urged government institutions to speed up operationalization of Institutional Integrity Committees (IICs) in abid to deal with corruption in the country.
She made the remarks on Monday when she presided over a parade which distinguished IICs organised in Blantyre as part of a campaign to raise awareness against corruption under the theme Resetting the Moral Tone.
Banda said that IICs aim to enhance activities designed to stamp out corruption which has become rampant in the country.
“We have asked the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB)to give us the list of all government institutions which have not yet operationalised these IICs. This initiative is to bring awareness because some people do not even realise that they are involved in corrupt practices,”she said.
“Some people participatein corruption unknowingly because corruption now is so deep rooted in our society; it is like a culture.So, we are trying to sensitizepeople on the evils of corruption so that they can desist and get rid of corruption in our society,” Banda said.
ACB Director General, Martha Chizuma commended IICs in Blantyre for the anti-corruption campaign, saying thousands have been sensitized through the parade which started off from Ginnery Corner to Limbe before going to Kamuzu Upper Stadium.
“People in shops, offices, minibuses and pedestrians have had the anti-corruption messages and we believe that wherever they go they will speak the same languagethat corruption is evil and we should not indulge in or welcome it,” she said.
Chizuma called for institutions to operationalize and utilize IICs, saying they are supposed to mainstream anti-corruption activities within an institution because ACB cannot be everywhere.
In July, 2022, President, Dr Lazarus Chakwera launched the nationwide anti-corruption campaign to fight graft whose theme is: ‘Corruption is our biggest enemy and not is not welcome here.’
The Campaign will end on December 9, 2022 which is International Anti- Corruption Day.
