Weapons-carrying suspect arrested at Missellele security checkpoint

Despite the official discourse on the fight against corruption, the scourge continues to grow, causing record losses in state coffers.

In Cameroon, corruption is doing well. Figures published by the National Anti-Corruption Commission (Conac) suggest an increase in the growth of the phenomenon in recent years. We learn from the report on the state of the fight against corruption in 2023, presented on September 26, 2024, that the State suffered financial damage estimated at 114.03 billion FCFA. An amount up by 109.4 billion FCFA (2378.3%) compared to the 4.6 billion FCFA losses recorded in 2022. This amount is also, according to the data, the record loss over the last five years , after 10.2 billion FCFA in 2019, 17 billion FCFA in 2020 and 43.9 billion FCFA in 2021. The report also reports 7,588 denunciations in 2023, compared to 7,061 the previous year, which represents an increase of 487 denunciations. These notifications were made electronically and by administrative mail.

According to Dieudonné Massi Gams, president of CONAC, the Budgetary and Financial Discipline Council (CDBF) of the Superior State Control (Consupe) rendered 20 decisions. These sanctioned the managers and former managers of six structures, including the National Social Security Fund (CNPS) and the Cameroon Real Estate Company (SIC). Dieudonné Massi Gams indicated that some of these officials were placed in debt for a total amount of 6.1 billion FCFA.

Basically the 114.03 billion FCFA in financial losses resulting from 16 fact-finding missions by the National Anti-Corruption Commission (Conac), as well as financial penalties resulting from 43 decisions rendered by the Budgetary and Financial Discipline Council (CDBF). ) of the Higher State Control (Consupe) and the Special Criminal Court (TCS).

Damage

Having established the acts of corruption, the state structures awarded damages for the benefit of the State in the amount of 38.5 billion FCFA. The report indicates that the Debt Recovery Company (SRC) managed to recover 8.5 billion FCFA, of which 7 billion concern court decisions relating to the misappropriation of public property and 1.5 billion FCFA in restitution from the body of offenses recorded by the TCS.

An institutional neglect

By taking stock of the year 2023 and the prospects for 2024, during his address to the Nation on December 31, 2023, Paul Biya informed Cameroonians that: “The fight against corruption and embezzlement of public funds is, very clearly, an imperative for the preservation of public resources. It will experience a notable intensification during the year ahead.” Only since the beginning of the year and despite the various denunciations, very few public officials have been concerned giving the impression of an institutionalization of corruption and embezzlement.

A worrying scourge

Even though the results of the corruption perception index published in January 2024 by Transparency International (TI), show that Cameroon gained two places compared to 2022, ranking 34^e most corrupt country in Africa (140^e worldwide) in 2023, the fact remains that the phenomenon is increasingly serious. Despite the institutional arsenal and the custodial sentences handed down against some of those responsible for public affairs, corruption continues to spread its tentacles, due to a fairly fragile institutional system. According to Steve Tametong, analyst at the Nkafu Institute Policy, the fight against corruption requires an “expansion of the normative and institutional system for combating corruption and apparent acts in Cameroon. Thus understanding, the ratification of the African Union Convention on the prevention and fight against corruption reinforces the normative system already in force. In the wake of the strengthening of this normative system, CONAC's advocacy in favor of strengthening the anti-corruption system through the adoption of an anti-corruption law and the signing of the decree implementing article 66 of the Constitution relating to the declaration of property and assets deserves to be carefully considered by the public authorities. Also, it is important to adopt a law relating to the penalization of illicit enrichment as prescribed by the provisions of Law No. 2018 of July 11, 2018 on the code of transparency and good governance in the management of public finances. “, he explains.

Joseph Essama