Papua New Guinea and the Philippines share best practices on combating corruption

(Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea) 14 June 2022   Papua New Guinea key anti-corruption officials have just undertaken a series of meetings with peer agencies in the Philippines.

Mrs Josephine Pitmur, Deputy Secretary, Department of Justice and Attorney General, led the delegation with Mr Jeffrey Murley, Acting Director, Governance Unit, Department of Prime Minister and National Executive Council, Ms Tapas Kametan, Senior Legal Officer, Office of the Public Prosecutor, and Mr Yuambari Haihuie, Deputy Director, Transparency International PNG. UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) officials, Mr Graeme Gunn, PNG Anti-Corruption Adviser, and Ms Kirbee Tibayan, Philippines’ Anti-Corruption Programme Officer, facilitated the exchanges.

 Papua New Guinea and the Philippines share best practices on combating corruption [Photo supplied]

Director Eric Distor, Head of the Philippines’ National Bureau of Investigation, hosted the PNG delegation for wide-ranging discussions on running major corruption cases ethically, effectively and independently.

Chairperson Atty. Emilio Aquino, Head of the Philippines’ Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), discussed the UNODC Philippines’ work with the SEC on beneficial ownership transparency, and on enhancing anti-money laundering. Discussions emphasized the need for civil society engagement and support. 

Philippines Prosecutor General, Mr. Benedicto A. Malcontento, and the Taskforce on Anti-Corruption briefed the PNG delegation on how inter-agency cooperation in law enforcement is carried out effectively in the Philippines.

“Exploring similarities and differences with the Philippines officials helps us in PNG to grow our integrity work as a whole-of-society approach to tackling corruption and to build international partnerships. We also welcome the growing commitment to gender equity in the anti-corruption field,” said Mrs Pitmur.

“The visit of our friends from Papua New Guinea gave us at the SEC Philippines an opportunity to learn how another jurisdiction’s efforts to combat money laundering and all forms of corruption mirror our own. The SEC Philippines welcomes future cooperation with Papua New Guinea as we continue to work towards our mutual goal to secure and strengthen our respective capital markets. Echoing our esteemed Chairperson Emilio B. Aquino, we, at the SEC Philippines, will walk the talk to ensure that, as a financial regulator, we will persevere in the fight against corruption and effectively implement our mandate,” said Atty. Oliver O. Leonardo, Director, Enforcement and Investor Protection Department, Securities and Exchange Commission.

“UNODC teams in PNG and the Philippines welcome the open exchange of good practices and challenges across the gamut of anti-corruption work in both countries,” said Mr Gunn.

The study tour to the Philippines is a prelude to PNG participation in this week’s UNCAC Implementation Review Group and Open-ended Intergovernmental Working Group on the Prevention of Corruption meetings in Vienna, Austria. These activities are supported by the Project on Preventing and Countering Corruption in Papua New Guinea, implemented jointly by UNODC and the UN Development Programme (UNDP) Papua New Guinea and funded by the European Union (EU).

About UNODC

UNODC works to counter drugs, crime, terrorism and corruption. It mobilizes and promotes regional and transnational cooperation to confront these threats. Specific efforts are made to target the world’s most vulnerable regions, where the convergence of these issues threatens regional and global security. UNODC works directly with Governments, international organizations, and civil society in undertaking three key actions: field-based technical cooperation projects to enhance the capacity of its Member States; research and analytical work to increase knowledge and understanding of drugs and crime issues; and normative work to assist Member States in the ratification and implementation of the relevant international treaties and the development of domestic legislation on drugs, crime, terrorism and corruption. More at www.unodc.org or follow at @UNODC.

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