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Bhadain pledges to oil the Icac machine
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Bhadain pledges to oil the Icac machine
In the wake of the government’s amendments to the Prevention of Corruption Act 2002, intended to make the Independent Commission against Corruption (Icac) more efficient, the commission is planning to change its methods. Although the government has not yet found the managing director who will head the Icac, Roshi Bhadain’s comeback should bring a breath of fresh air to the commission.
With these amendments, commissioner Beekarry and his deputies Bisasur and Taujoo have had to vacate their offices and Roshi Bhadain, the investigations director, has been reinstated in his job. As soon he was back in office, the latter announced his intention of bringing in the necessary changes for the commission to do its job properly and regain public trust.
The Icac has often been criticised for arresting people only on provisional charges, based on a witness’s statement. These arrests received a lot of media coverage, which could tarnish the reputations of people, who, in fact, had nothing to do with the case. “We want to put an end to speculation so as to protect the integrity of people. Hence, we would also protect the integrity of the investigation,” Roshi Bhadain explains.
Police force to deal with prima facie cases</B>
Roshi Bhadain wants the Icac to become an “investigative body” rather than a “parallel police”, as it has been perceived so far. With this in mind, the investigations director proposes that, when the investigation is completed, the file be sent to the Director of public prosecutions (DPP) and that arrests be made only when there is a prima facie case. A lot of useless procedures will thus be avoided.
At present, the investigations department briefs the commission on the cause of the arrest based on provisional charges, then the commission refers the case to the commissioner of police as it doesn’t have the power to arrest people. The CP asks for the DPP’s approval and the case is sent back to the Icac where its policemen arrest the suspects.
As these procedures will no longer be effective, the 11 policemen attached to the commission will go back to their previous posts. Only those who have taken leave without pay will stay in the Icac’s investigations department. Only two members of the police force have joined the commission to deal with prima facie cases.
With such a method, there should be less risk that enquiries are abandoned and can’t be taken up in Court - if the Icac makes sure it has “solid and reasonable grounds for conviction”, then it will face fewer failures in court.
All these good intentions should help the commission regain the public confidence that it had lost following various criticisms from Supreme Court judges. The team hopes that the public will then be keener to cooperate, if need be. More communication with the press is also considered; the ICAC would provide the press with information that will in no way interfere with the enquiry.
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