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The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has on Tuesday 23rd August, 2022, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Zero Corruption Campaign (ZCC), a civil society organization that focuses on the promotion of integrity, accountability and transparency in the delivery of services by public sector institutions.
The signing ceremony which took place at the ACC Head Office at 3 Gloucester Street, Freetown, will among other things formalize the relationship between the two institutions to work in partnership to provide reliable and relevant information on corrupt practices and other corruption-related issues in Sierra Leone.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Deputy Commissioner ACC, Augustine Foday Ngobie said it required the “concerted efforts of all Sierra Leoneans to join in this national effort to defeat corruption, which has held to ransom the destiny of our country for several decades”. He went on to state that, these partnerships will go a long way to attaining the mandate of the Commission as provided for in Section 7(1) (a) of the Anti-Corruption Act 2008 as amended in 2019, “to take all steps as may be necessary for the prevention, eradication or suppression of corruption and corrupt practices”. He encouraged ZCC to ensure they unearth corruption and always bring same to the attention of the Commission as they are now Ambassadors of the ACC through this partnership. He also said this partnership will encourage other institutions and individuals to come on board in the fight against corruption.
Elison John, the Executive Director of ZCC in his statement, expressed gratitude to the Commission for the opportunity granted his organization to partner with the ACC in fighting corruption. He assured the Commission that ZCC will continue to uphold its values in fighting graft, not for oneself but for the country.
“While the task ahead is challenging, we have committed ourselves to this course as our contribution to nation building”, he concluded.
Earlier, the Director of Public Education and External Outreach Department ACC, Patrick Sandi who chaired the event, expressed the Commission’s appreciation to the membership of ZCC in their efforts through advocacy to support the fight against corruption and spoke about the significance of such partnerships.
The reading of the citation of the MoU was done by Amie Massaquoi, ACC’s Assistant Information Officer.
According to the Agreement, ZCC will continue to undertake activities such as sensitizing and educating the public on corruption, its negative effects, the benefits of a corrupt-free society, integrity in public life, and patriotism.
It is worthy of note that, the ACC has under the administration of Francis Ben Kaifala, from 2018 to date, forged partnerships, through the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), with fifteen (15) good governance, civil society, media, and youth organizations.
