The Federal Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission is in the final stages of revealing the top government officials assets through an online system that can be accessible to the public through an inquiry.
The commission will post the assets in three months.
The asset information includes the wealth of the Prime Minister, the ministers of different institutions, state ministers, directors, procurement staff and other selected officials.
The information will tell the requester the movable and fixed asset of the officials.
The system which has been developed by the Indian company, CSM for the last five years consumed USD 198,000.
Currently the commission has shown the wealth of the official in the manual requiring system which the requester must be physically present at the Commission Office to get the information.
So far more than 1,000 people have looked at publicized wealth information through the manual system. So far more than 160,000 government officials have registered their wealth in the commission data.
But the new system will cut the manual system and anyone in remote areas of the country can access the wealth of the officials online.
Mesfin Belyahne, Asset Registration and Disclosure Director at the Commission told Capital that some of the staff went to India to learn the system.
“The new system is not like Wikipedia that can get you quick access to a given information but rather it is platform that you get the information after you fill out forms.’’
“The reason we made an enquiry system is that some people may use the information for unnecessary things that can damage the privacy of the officials so to protect the officials we have asked people to confirm the reason they need the information, and where they work.”
According to Mesfin the system will not allow to copy and duplicate the files so as to protect the officials’ privacy.
The aim behind assets registration of high-ranking officials was to prevent corruption, embezzlement of public funds, and to establish a monitoring mechanism for public and the media. According to the law, the asset registration process of high ranking officials takes place in three stages; registration, publication and verification.
Moreover, it will integrate a system where a public can inform concerned bodies if a property owned by the officials is not registered in the system.
If the information obtained through whistleblowing leads to the confiscation of assets under article 419(2) of the Criminal Code, the whistle-blower shall be entitled to 25 percent of the proceeds of the confiscated asset.