KABUL (SW) – Mohammad Sarwar Danish, second vice president, has acknowledged that the National Unity Government has failed to completely eradicate corruption.
He expressed these views on Monday in connection with the International Anti-Corruption Day observed every year on Dec. 9. Addressing a moot in this connection, Danish said mafia groups continue to operate and undermine the rule of law in the country.
The VP stressed it is pivotal to appoint steadfast individuals at top positions in public offices with proven clean record and strong will to combat this menace. He said the center of administrative corruption in Afghanistan surrounds the abuse of state resources.
Afghanistan remains among the 10 countries most affected by corruption in the world. In the 2019 Asia Foundation Survey of the Afghan People, 81.5% of respondents find corruption as a major problem in Afghanistan.
International Anti-Corruption Day is observed every year on December 9th. This began with the adoption of the United Nations Convention against Corruption in 2003, which Afghanistan ratified in 2008.
The Ambassadors Anti-Corruption Group comprised of the Heads of Mission for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, Denmark, Germany, Japan, United States of America, Australia, Canada, Italy, Norway, World Bank, NATO Senior Civilian Representative, Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan, United Kingdom (UK), and European Union (EU) have welcomed steps to improve the legislative and policy framework to fight corruption, including the new Penal Code, the Law on Access to Information and the dedicated Anti-corruption Law.
According to this Group, the 2016 establishment of the Anti-Corruption Justice Centre (ACJC) and the implementation of the 2017 Anti-Corruption Strategy are further steps in the right direction and so is the recent establishment of the Office of the Ombudsperson.
ENDS
