Hong Kong ICAC remains unwavering in anti-graft mission

HONG KONG – The World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY) 2016 earlier released by the Swiss-based International Institute for Management Development (IMD) reaffirmed Hong Kong’s remarkable status as the most competitive among 61 economies.

Competitiveness in the WCY 2016 was assessed based on the economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure of a place. One of the sub-factors under “government efficiency” was institutional framework which comprised 15 components, including “bribing and corruption”.

In terms of “bribing and corruption”, Hong Kong was ranked the seventh in 2016, eight places higher than last year’s 15th. On a scale from 0 (highly corrupt) to 10 (highly clean), Hong Kong registered a score of 8.04 as compared to last year’s 7.31.

Commenting on the IMD survey, Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) Commissioner Mr Simon Peh Yun-lu said the result showed that Hong Kong’s efforts in integrity building were highly recognised internationally.

ICAC Chief Simon Peh welcomes the IMD findingsMr Peh also noted that despite rumours and speculations about recent movements at the top echelon of the ICAC, the Commission remained as committed as ever to fighting corruption and safeguarding Hong Kong’s reputation as one of the cleanest cities in the world.

“Enshrined in the Basic Law, the independent status of the ICAC has been one of the cornerstones that defines Hong Kong as what it is today. Members of the public can rest assured that the Commission will continue to perform its anti-corruption duties without interference, fear or favour,” said the Commissioner.

“I have every confidence that the new Senior Management of the Operations Department as well as our seasoned leaders of the Community Relations Department and the Corruption Prevention Department will be able to leverage synergies from their respective expertise, further demonstrating the effectiveness of Hong Kong’s time-tested three-pronged strategy to fight corruption,” assured Mr Peh.

Looking ahead, Mr Ricky Yau Shu-chun, Acting Head of Operations, told the ICAC Post that his 1,000-strong department would rise to future challenges with unwavering determination.

“We will pursue every single corruption complaint in a fair and impartial manner as we did in the past 42 years, and will continue to enhance our capabilities and professionalism in serving the people of Hong Kong,” affirmed Mr Yau.

World competitiveness scoreboard 2016

Rank

(Compared with 2015)

Country/territory

1 ▲1 Hong Kong
2 ▲2 Switzerland
3 ▼2 USA
4 ▼1 Singapore
5 ▲4 Sweden
6 ▲2 Denmark
7 ▲9 Ireland
8 ▲7 The Netherlands
9 ▼2 Norway
10 ▼5 Canada

‘Bribing and corruption’ component: Ranks and scores

Rank

Country/territory

Score (0-10)

1 Denmark 9.33
2 New Zealand 8.96
3 Finland 8.85
4 Singapore 8.55
5 The Netherlands 8.22
6 Switzerland 8.21
7 Hong Kong 8.04
8 Sweden 7.91
9 Canada 7.85
10 Germany 7.77

CPD launches training package for retail industry

In close partnership with the retail sector, the ICAC’s Corruption Prevention Department has launched a training package for over 270,000 employees in the industry, including front-line staff members, managers and operators.

At a press briefing, ICAC’s Assistant Director of Corruption Prevention Mrs Jennie Au Yeung Wong Mei-fong said the training package aimed to enhance the awareness of retail practitioners on corruption pitfalls in retail operations, and advise retail operators on the safeguards that could help mitigate the risks.

The Integrity + Quality: Shoppers Paradise training package comprises six short filmlets covering corrupt practices and procedural loopholes in various operational areas of a retail business, an analysis of the lessons learnt and the recommended preventive measures.

“The contents of this training package are based on the related Units of Competency on corruption prevention and integrity management extracted from the Specification of Competency Standards for the Retail Industry under the Qualifications Framework,” Mrs Au Yeung added.

To enhance understanding, a “Train the Trainer” seminar was jointly organized by the ICAC, the Hong Kong Qualifications Framework and the Hong Kong Retail Management Association for practitioners in the retail industry.

The seminar was attended by over 30 human resources and training personnel from 15 retail chain groups in various businesses, such as department stores, furniture shops, childcare products and musical instruments.

The training package was well received by the participants as 90 per cent of them considered it useful for raising staff awareness of integrity issues.