ZURICH: The
Swiss government
must improve its measures to tackle corruption by federal officials and departments after steps taken were found to be inadequate, an evaluation report said on Thursday.“Important reforms” are needed to increase the effectiveness of the
anti-corruption working group set up by the
Swiss cabinet ten years ago, the
Swiss Federal Audit Office’s (SFAO)
review said. Several scandals have emerged in Switzerland this year, including at PostBus, part of the state-owned
Swiss Post, which used irregular accounting practices to divert cash from its subsidised regional transport business to other parts of its business. Federal prosecutors have also searched state arms group RUAG after a whistleblower flagged unauthorised arms exports. Switzerland set up the group in December 2008 after the Council of Europe’s Group of States Against Corruption demanded better sharing of information and other measures to prevent corruption of government officials. But the part-time group, which ran
anti-corruption workshops, was found by the SFAO
review to be inadequate and lacked a proper strategy or communications. “They are not experts in fighting corruption. They have not enough independence, budget, authority and visibility to achieve its objectives,” said Eric-Serge Jeannet, vice director of the SFAO.The group had only a basic website and was virtually unknown outside the federal government, making it difficult to tackle corruption, he added. The
review recommended the
Swiss government set up a new, independent office to share information about possible corruption cases, with specialist officers employed. The report has been submitted to the
Swiss government, which said it would use the report to develop further measures in future. Global watchdog Transparency International said it shared the concerns, and called for an independent and effective anti- corruption organisation in Switzerland.“It is impossible to say how much corruption there is in the
Swiss public sector, but there are a lot more cases than people think,” said Alex Biscaro, deputy director of the group in Switzerland. “In the fight against corruption, an effective federal agency
must be given a comprehensive mandate and the necessary resources by the politicians. That is something that the government has so far unfortunately failed to do.”
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