Hong Kong sees corruption complaints down 2%

The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), Hong Kong's anti-graft authority, received 3,932 graft complaints in 2012, down 2 percent year on year, a local official said Wednesday. Although graft complaints against government departments increased 7 percent year on year to 1,192, there was no sign of a resurgence of syndicated corruption, said Christopher Chung, member of the Legislative Council and the Advisory Committee on Corruption, while submitting the ICAC's 2012 Annual Report to the Legislative Council. According to the report, corruption complaints involving public bodies increased 12 percent to 257 last year, while private sector corruption complaints dropped 7 percent to 2,483. The ICAC's special election taskforce investigated 1,604 complaints alleging vote-rigging in relation to the 2011 District Council Election. While 55 people were prosecuted, investigations did not reveal evidence of rampant vote planting, Chung said. ICAC Commissioner Simon Peh said his officers are committed to striving for effective law enforcement in the face of modern challenges. The ICAC Complaints Committee also submitted its annual report to the Legislative Council on Wednesday. In 2012, the committee received 19 complaints comprising 57 allegations against the ICAC and its officers. Of the total, 53 percent were related to misconduct, 28 percent neglect of duties, 14 percent abuse of power, and 5 percent inadequacies in ICAC procedures.