Corruption Offences

Offences Under Part 3 of the Anti-Corruption Act (2019 Revision)

Bribery of Public Officers and Members of the Legislative Assembly

• directly or indirectly-
  • solicits;
  • accepts or obtains; or
  • agrees to accept or obtain,
• for himself or any other person, any loan, reward, advantage or other benefit with intent-
  • to interfere with the administration of justice;
  • to procure or facilitate the commission of an offence; or
  • to protect from detection or punishment a person who has committed or who intends to commit an offence,
• Gives or offers any loan, reward, advantage or other benefit, with intent that the public officer should do anything mentioned above.

Frauds on the Government

• Demands, accepts, offers or agrees to accept a loan, reward, advantage or other benefit for cooperation, assistance, exercise of influence etc. in connection with the transaction of business relating to the Government.
• Pays a commission or reward or confers an advantage or benefit on a member of the Legislative Assembly or a public officer of a government entity or to any member of the family of a member of the Legislative Assembly or a public officer, unless he has the consent in writing of the Chief Officer of the government entity.
• Demands, accepts or offers or agrees to accept from a person who has dealings with the Government a loan, reward, advantage or other benefit directly or indirectly, by himself or through a member of his family or through any one for his benefit, unless he has the consent in writing of the Chief Officer of the government entity that employs him or of which he is an official.

Breach of Trust by Public Officer or by a Member of the Legislative Assembly

• In connection with the duties of a public office, commits fraud or a breach of trust;
• Liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of five years, whether or not the fraud or breach of trust would be an offence if it were committed in relation to a private person.

Selling or Purchasing Office

• Sell or agrees to sell an appointment to or a resignation from a public office, or a consent to any such appointment or resignation, or
• Purchase or give a loan, reward, advantage or other benefit for the purchase of any such appointment, resignation or consent, or agrees or promises to do so.

Influencing or Negotiating Appointments or Dealing in Offices

• Receives, agrees to receive, gives or procures to be given, directly or indirectly, a loan, reward, advantage or other benefit as consideration for cooperation, assistance or exercise of influence to secure the appointment of any other person to a public office;
• Solicits, recommends or negotiates an appointment to or resignation from a public office, in expectation of a direct or indirect loan, reward, advantage or other benefit.

False Claims by Public Officers

• Knowingly make false claims on accounting statements or returns relating to money payable to himself or any other person for services, delivery of goods, etc.

Abuse of Office

• Doing or directing to be done, in abuse of the authority of a public office, any arbitrary act prejudicial to the rights of another person.

False Certificates by Public Officers or by Members of the Legislative Assembly

• Knowingly giving a false certificate when authorised or required by law to give such a certificate wherein the rights of any person may be prejudicially affected.

Conflict of Interest

• Where a government entity proposes to deal with a company, partnership or other undertaking in which -
  • a public officer of the entity;
  • a member of the Legislative Assembly; or
  • a member of the family, or an associate, of any person specified in paragraphs (a) or (b), has a direct, indirect or beneficial interest in such company, partnership or undertaking; or
  • any person specified in paragraphs (a), (b) or (c) holds more than ten per cent of the total issued share capital or of the total equity participation in such company, partnership or other undertaking, the public officer or the member of the Legislative Assembly shall forthwith disclose, in writing, to that government entity, the nature of such interest.
• Where in relation to a government entity -
  • a public officer of the entity;
  • a member of the Legislative Assembly; or
  • a member of the family, or an associate, of either the public officer or the member of the Legislative Assembly,has a personal interest in a decision which the government entity is to take, that public officer or member of the Legislative Assembly shall forthwith disclose, in writing, to the government entity, the nature of that personal interest.
• A public officer or member of the Legislative Assembly who fails to disclose an interest in accordance with subsection (1) or (2) and who votes or otherwise takes part in proceedings or decisions of the government entity relating to such interest commits an offence and is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for a term of five years.

Failure of a Public Officer and Member of the Legislative Assembly to Whom a Bribe is Offered to Report Such Offerings

• A public officer or MLA to whom any loan, reward, advantage or other benefit is given, promised or offered, in contravention of the Anti-Corruption Act, shall report such to the Commission or any RCIPS police constable together with the name, if known, of the person who gave, promised, or offered such load, reward, advantage or other benefit to him.
• A public officer or MLA who has reasonable cause, to believe that another public officer or MLA has solicited, obtained, or agreed to accept or obtain any loan, reward, advantage or other benefit, in contravention of the Anti-Corruption Act, shall report the name of the public officer or MLA to the Commission or any RCIPS police constable.

Secret Commissions

• gives, offers or agrees to give or offer to an agent any loan, reward, advantage or other benefit relating to the affairs or business of his principal or for favour or disfavour to any person with relation to the affairs or business of his principal; or
• being an agent, demands, accepts or offers or agrees to accept from any person any loan, reward, advantage or other benefit relating to the affairs or business of his principal or for showing favour or disfavour to any person with relation to the affairs or business of his principal; or

Bribing a Foreign Public Officer

• Obtain or retain an advantage in the course of business, directly or indirectly promises, gives, offers or agrees to give or offer a loan, reward, advantage, or benefit of any kind to a foreign public officer for his benefit or for the benefit of another person or to person for the benefit of a foreign public officer-
  • as consideration for an act or omission by the foreign public officer in connection with the performance of the officer’s duties or functions; or
  • to induce the foreign public officer to use his position to influence any acts or decisions of the foreign country or public international organisation for which the officer performs duties or functions.

False Statements to the Commission

• Makes or causes any other person to make false or misleading statements to the Commission or to a police constable.
• Makes an initial statement to the Commission or RCIPS, and then willfully makes a subsequent inconsistent statement to the Commission or RCIPS.

Inchoate Offences

• Unless expressly provided otherwise the following are offences under this Act-
  • an attempt, conspiracy or incitement to commit an offence under this Act; and
  • aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring the commission of an offence under this Act.

Contractor Subscribing to Election Fund

• A person who, in order to obtain or retain a contract with the Government, or as a term of any such contract, whether express or implied, directly or indirectly subscribes or gives, or agrees to subscribe or give, to any person any loan, reward, advantage or other benefit-
  • for the purpose of promoting the election of a candidate or a class or party of candidates to the Legislative Assembly; or
  • with intent to influence or affect in any way the result of an election conducted for the purpose of electing persons to serve in the Legislative Assembly, commits an offence.
• A person who commits an offence under this section is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for a term of ten years.

Facilitation of Payments

• For the purpose of section 22 (Bribing a Public Officer), a payment is not a loan, reward, advantage or other benefit to obtain or retain an advantage in the course of business, if -
  • the value of the payment is small;
  • it is made to expedite or secure the performance by a foreign public officer of any act of a routine nature that is part of the foreign public officer's duties or functions, including-
    • the issuance of a permit, licence or other document to qualify a person to do business;
    • the processing of official documents, such as visas and work permits;
    • the provision of services normally offered to the public, such as mail pick-up and delivery, telecommunication services and power and water supply; and
    • the provision of services normally provided as required, such as police protection, loading and unloading of cargo, the protection of perishable products or commodities from deterioration or the scheduling of inspections related to contract performance or transit of goods; and
  • as soon as practicable after the payment and the act of a routine nature performed by the foreign public officer occurred, the person made a record of the payment and the act and either the following applies-
    • the person has retained that record at all relevant times; or
    • that record has been lost or destroyed because of the actions of another person over whom the first-mentioned person had no control, or because of a non-human act or event over which the first-mentioned person had no control, and the first-mentioned person could not reasonably be expected to have guarded against the bringing about of that loss or that destruction.
• For the purposes of this Act, an "act of a routine nature" does not include a decision to award new business or to continue business with a particular party, including a decision on the terms of that business, or encouraging another person to make any such decision.
• A report under this section shall set out-
  • the value of the payment concerned;
  • particulars of the act of a routine nature that was sought to be expedited or secured by the payment;
  • the date or dates on which the payment was made and on which the act of a routine nature occurred;
  • the identity of the relevant foreign public official; and
  • the signature of the person who has made the report or some other means of verifying the person's identity.

It is noted that some of these offences can only be committed by a public officer (PO) or a member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) while others can be committed by any member of the public.