Palestinian NGOs representatives and experts called last Wednesday to adopt a community-based accountability initiative to fight against corruption at various level and promote the values of integrity, transparency and good governance in the Palestinian society, proceeding from the initial compliance with these rules on the grounds that these rules are essential component of good governance.
This took place in a panel discussion organized by the Palestinian NGO's Network (PNGO) under the title "NGOs role in promoting accountability". The panel discussion hosted Majdi Abu Zaid the executive director of the Coalition for Integrity and Accountability – AMAN. Number of NGO's representatives and human rights activists attended the discussion which organized with the project entitled "Developing NGOs' role in the development process" in cooperation with the European Union.
Amjad Shawa, director of the Palestinian NGO's Network (PNGO), in his speech noted that the continued internal division, the power struggle between Fatah and Hamas movements, and the absence of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) are the main challenges faced by the Palestinian National Integrity System as one of the most significant pillars of oversight and accountability, not to mention the weak accountability of the executive authority.
Shawa stressed the significant need to activate the role of the Palestinian civil society to promote integrity, transparency, and accountability in the Palestinian civil society organizations. He also stressed need to create a working environment for the local government bodies and the public institutions that would help to detect crimes and limit their spread, through lobbying and advocacy, working out the legislation, building the capacities of actors in the field, and provide studies and reports to decision makers.
Majdi Abu Zaid, executive director of the Coalition for Integrity and Accountability – AMAN, stressed his rejection of the Executive Authority's actions and lack of transparency in legislation and public policy, which may lead to further deterioration and may eradicate the rights and freedoms and crack the entire political system, thus threatening the society and societal peace.
Abu Zaid stated that despite the efforts of the General Personnel Council to provide the public employees with the Job Description Cards, the Job Description Cards to senior positions had not been completely prepared by the end of 2015.
He added, other reasons are behind the non completion of preparing the Job Description Cards such as, the continued absence of written and approved procedures on the appointment and promotion of number of the heads of the non-ministerial bodies and others procedures relating to the determination of the employees' salaries, rights and financial privileges in addition to the continued fraud of some officials in the experts' contracts for the interests of individuals from the public money.
Abu Zaid, meanwhile, noted that during 2015 a conflict broke up between the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Housing and Public Works over powers which increased patronage and nepotism ratios.
He said that the administrative and financial preparations were that slow which impeded the activation of the public procurement law and retrained the exception policy and direct procurement as well as the expansion in the direct purchase decision, increased patronage and nepotism ratios.
Abu Zaid pointed to AMAN's report of 2015 where it is noted to the oil and gas management that lacks to regulatory guidelines, and the General Petroleum Authority management of the fuel trade (petrol, diesel, gas, kerosene and oils) without any regulatory guidelines.
He also pointed to the results shown by the Palestinian public opinion polls on corruption and strategies to combat it; which reflect negative impression.
According to the results shown by the Public opinion polls, the widespread corruption is among the most outstanding problems that need to be addressed along with unemployment, poverty, occupation and settlement.
Abu Zaid noted that the most prominent forms of corruption that have emerged in 2015, are incumbency, nepotism, favoritism and personal connections at the expense of professionalism and efficiency.
He added, some other forms of corruption included food corruption crimes which increased due to the non-effectiveness of sanctions imposed on the traders of corrupted foods, as well as the increased nepotism, favoritism and bribery in exchange for travel permit, transit, or treatment abroad, as a result of the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip and the limited opportunities to travel abroad.
Abu Zaid went on saying, other forms of corruption emerged in the misuse of credit, abuse of the power of the public office and embezzlement the issue the public prosecutor mostly dealt in 2015 when 39 corruption cases were referred to the anti-corruption Prosecutor's Office including 36 cases (92%) related to the public sector and local bodies and 3 cases related to the civil work.
The participants, at the end of the discussion, stressed the need to find innovative ways to ensure enhancement of citizen's heard and influential voice in the light of ineffective parliamentary life, and ensure a wide participation of the public in the decision-making process at the various levels, in the absence of the possibility to practice democracy and the right to elect, whereas in the world the technological development provides a wide opportunity to obtain the citizens' opinions directly in innovative ways that everyone is entitled to benefit from.
The participants called for the need to NGOs effective role and responsibility to ensure the abide of the bodies of executive power by the principle of accountability. They stressed the need to pressure to unify and activate the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) and its oversight role.
The participants stressed the need to rationalize the public spending through inventorying all the senior posts and determining the salary cap as well as reducing both the excessive salaries of the employees and the privileges of the senior employees. They called to prevent double employment in the public office to provide an opportunity for the young graduates to find jobs.