No ‘Santa’ for public servants

Sri Lanka’s anti- graft body has come down firmly on gifts through hampers and other expensive items to public officials during this festive season from the private sector, saying these ‘ gifts’ fall within the purview of a ‘bribe’.

While in reality the distribution of hampers is a practice carried out by private sector companies to their contacts and associates as a gesture of goodwill and hospitality, more expensive gifts are seen as a gratification.

Earlier this week Director General of Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption ( CIABOC) Sarath Jayamanna sent a circular to organizations including chambers which were associated with this month’s National AntiCorruption Summit urging private firms to desist from this practice commencing from this year.

“This Commission has taken cogni- zance of the instances where public servants are soliciting and accepting gratifications from private companies by way of seasonal hampers during the festival season. This is an offence under section 19 ( c) of the Bribery Act. Any person who aids and abets any public servant in committing the offence is liable to be tried under section 25 of the Act,” the circular said.

This is the first time that the Commission has sent out a circular to the private sector drawing attention to festive gifts being construed as a gratification.

CIABOC Commissioner Neville Guruge told the Business Times that distributing seasonal gifts, recognition gifts, gift vouchers, airline tickets, pre-paid holiday packages or any other forms of gratifications among public officials cannot be considered as token of appreciation as these officials are bound to serve the publ ic in accordance with the Establishment Code.

Once receiving a hamper from a private company, public officials may tend to demand it every year, he said adding that CIABOC was fully aware about the soliciting and accepting of Xmas and year end hampers during the festive season.

He revealed that some companies gifted valuable items like refrigerators TV sets, etc as hampers to public servants and those items were undue inducement for getting favours from the officials.

Mr. Guruge said there was a distinction between people exchanging gifts during the holiday season in a spirit of giving and the undue inducements to public and private sector officials.

A gift is something of value given without the expectation of return; a bribe is the same thing given in the hope of influence or benefit.

All public officials, both elected and appointed, are bound by rules and regulations of the Bribery Act. No one is above the country’s law, he added.