Seminar for public consultation on the 2021-2025 CAC strategic plan development
A seminar for public consultation on the Anti-Corruption Commission (CAC) strategic plan development for the period 2021-2025 occurred on October 27th and 28th, 2020, at Salão São Paulo, in Dili, with the theme “CAC in the Past, Present and Future”.
The Seminar aimed at analyse the progress and challenges experienced by CAC during the last ten years, to understand the public's thinking about the efforts already made by Timor-Leste in the fight against corruption and its expectations for CAC for the next five years, and also define objectives, strategic directions, goals and priorities for the institution's strategic plan, for the next five years, for the prevention and fight against corruption.
During the two days of the event, participants addressed issues related to good governance, the justice sector, the economy and state revenues, and infrastructure development.
The CAC Commissioner, Sérgio da Costa Hornai, in his speech at the opening of the event, stated that “after ten years of existence” the development of this strategic plan of the Anti-Corruption Commission is “an indispensable mission that needs the contribution of all” for the elaboration of this instrument that will “define the CAC policy in a systematic, integrated and realistic way”, “to fight corruption in the next five years”.
The first session of the seminar, under the theme Good Governance (strengthening institutions and ethics), was attended by the Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Fidelis Manuel Leite Magalhães, by the President of the Civil Service Commission, Faustino Cardoso and by the Human Rights and Justice Ombudsman, Mrs Jesuina Maria Gomes, as speakers, and by the CAC Deputy Commissioner for Prevention and Awareness Issues, Luís de Oliveira Sampaio, as moderator of the debate.
The Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers highlighted “three points considered relevant” in the scope of the discussion of this public consultation:
The first refers to the “need to join efforts and a political will to fight corruption”, “which should not be exclusive to the CAC”, but rather “to all the State bodies, as well as the different political actors and civil society”, “so that this fight is increasingly effective and truly national”.
Second, “the need to implement mechanisms that may allow the effective application of Law No. 7/2020, of August 26th, on measures to prevent and combat corruption”, in which “this seminar represents another decisive step in identifying ways to expand the capacities of the Timorese State to prevent and also to combat corruption and impunity. Prevent and combat!, two essential actions to deepen democracy itself and the country's economic development ”.
The third point refers to "the life experiences and already made and ongoing efforts as part of his duties" as Minister of Legislative Reform and Parliamentary Affairs and now in the Presidency of the Council of Ministers.
At this level, the recently published Public Administration Reform Program stands out, “which includes objectives to work on preventing corruption and systematically holding services and their bodies accountable”.
Also, the Program "projects the modernization of processes and the provision of public administration services through electronic governance in particular", which "will allow for more transparent administrative processes".
Efforts “to qualitatively improve the legislative process, making it more transparent and substantiated, as well as the legislative production necessary for the regulatory activities and adoption of legal rules for essential areas of the functioning of the State and Public Administration”.
The second part of the session, on good governance was attended by the former CAC Deputy Commissioner for Prevention and Awareness Issues, José Neves 'Samalarua', by the Director of the Centre for Studies on Peace and Development (CEPAD) and President of the Pastoral Council of the Dili’s Diocese, Reverend Father Juvito do Rego.
On the afternoon of the 27th, took place the session on the area of justice, with the participation of the President of the Court of Appeal, Deolindo dos Santos, the President of the National Parliament Committee A, Joaquim dos Santos, the Attorney General of the Republic, José da Costa Ximenes, the Director of the Scientific Police for Criminal Investigation of Timor-Leste (PCIC), Vicente Fernandes e Brito, the Director of the Judicial System Monitoring Program (JSMP) and Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at UNTL. The session was moderated by the CAC Deputy Commissioner for Research Affairs, Augusto da Costa Castro.
On the morning of the 28th took place the session on economic sustainability, with the ex-President of the National Parliament Committee C, Mrs Fernanda Lay, of the former deputy and ex-Coordinator of the Committee for Tax Reform, the President of the Petroleum Fund Consultative Council, the President of ANPM, Florentino Soares Ferreira, the General Director of the Customs Authority, José António Fátima Abílio and the Minister of Public Works, Salvador dos Reis Pires.
In the afternoon, took place the session on infrastructure, with the participation of the Presidente of the National Parliament Committee E, Abel Pires, of the former deputy Director of the ADN General Director , Rui Lourenço da Costa, of the Director of CNA, Aniceto do Rosário, of the Director ANC and the CCITL President, Oscar Lima.
The last seminar session, before the closing words by the CAC Commissioner, was related to a critical observation about the perception of the effort to prevent and fight corruption in Timor-Leste, with the President of the Press Council, Virgílio Guterres, the Executive Director of FONGTIL, Daniel Santos do Carmo and the President of Rede Feto, Yasinta Lujina.
