Transparency International calls for the implementation of constitutional provisions on asset declaration for public officials

Berlin, Yaoundé – 9 March 2006 – Transparency International (TI) calls on the Cameroonian parliamentarians that began their session today, to assert their anti-corruption mandate and implement Article 66 of the Constitution of Cameroon on asset declaration for public officials. The application of this legal instrument is crucial as a series of precedent-setting corruption and embezzlement cases have recently been launched against a number of high-ranking Cameroon officials.

“There can be no ‘sacred cows’ in Cameroon if we are to have an effective and impartial justice system. If the guilty are to pay for their grave crimes against the citizens of our country, sanctioning of those convicted of corruption and embezzlement must be immediate, fair and appropriate,” said Akere Muna, founder of Transparency International’s chapter in Cameroon and Vice Chair of Transparency International’s Board of Directors. “The filing of these cases should be a turning point in the effort to eradicate corruption in Cameroon,” he added.

“This is precisely the kind of action citizens want to see: the state representing the interests of the victims of corruption, who are ultimately the people of Cameroon,” said Huguette Labelle, Chair of Transparency International. “The courts must now follow through to ensure that the guilty are quickly made to pay for their crimes.”

The outcome of these high-level corruption cases should form the basis for new institutional structures and standards that will aggressively counter corruption and deter future cases of illicit enrichment. The process of asset declaration by public officials will gain momentum through the ratification of the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption and Related Offences.

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Transparency International is the global civil society organisation leading the fight against corruption.

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