Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC)

In February 2006 the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) was inaugurated, nearly two and a half years after the Anti-corruption Act, 2003 (No. 8 of 2003) was passed by Parliament. 

Although dealing with corruption cases is the constitutional mandate of the Office of the Ombudsman, the majority of cases it has dealt with have related to maladministration. 

A survey report by the Namibia Institute for Democracy (NID) as part of its 'Zero Tolerance for Corruption Campaign' identified 184 cases of corruption as having been reported in the press between 1 April 2004 and 31 March 2006. The majority of these cases involved parastatals and public agencies.

The ACC has to provide the Prime Minister with an annual report. It is equipped with wide ranging powers of investigation and obliged to refer its findings to the Prosecutor-General who then may or may not decide to pursue the alleged offence. 

The ACC will also work closely with the Namibian Police Force, the Office of the Auditor General and the Namibian Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority. Unlike the Ombudsman, the ACC and its investigators do not require a lodged complaint to initiate investigations, they may investigate allegations of corruption at their own discretion. Prosecutional powers are, however, constitutionally vested in the Prosecutor-General.