Cameroon plans special court to handle graft - report

DAKAR (TrustLaw) – Cameroon’s government is considering introducing a special tribunal to try people accused of corruption and other economic crimes, government run TV (CRTV) reported late on Thursday.

Corruption is rife in the west-central African nation which has twice been ranked the most corrupt country in the world in Transparency International’s (TI) corruption perception index.

The new court would try anyone accused of corruption, embezzlement or misappropriation of funds involving sums of FCFA 100 million and above, according to the bill. The Supreme Court, the country’s highest court, would handle any appeals.

The bill is being discussed by the constitutional laws committee of Cameroon's national assembly.
“The government wants to avoid lengthy trials and litigation in the fight against corruption,” CRTV said.
The bill also says anti-graft cases could be closed if the suspect repaid any misappropriated funds. However, judges would have to consult the ministry of justice before taking such steps.

The bill was tabled at an extraordinary session of parliament barely two weeks after the country’s national anti-corruption commission (CONAC) published its report on the fight against corruption in the country. The report showed that several ministries and government-run companies had misappropriated hundreds of millions of dollars.

The country’s leader Paul Biya launched an anti-corruption campaign in 2006. The campaign known as Operation Epervier (Operation Sparrowhawk) has led to the arrest of nine former ministers and the trial of scores of seniors civil servants, heads of state-run companies and parliamentarians.
In some of these cases, the suspects, especially former ministers, have been held awaiting trial for several years.
Civil society groups have criticised the campaign as ineffective.
“Both those who have been arrested and outside observers see this operation as essentially a tool of political witch-hunting in the president’s interest,” Fanny Pigeaud, the author of a book on Biya’s 29-year rule, told TrustLaw in September.
“That is why corruption remains pervasive although operation Sparrowhawk is ongoing," she added.
The government has refuted these allegations, pointing to Cameroon’s improved rankings on TI's anti-corruption index as a sign that the campaign is yielding fruit. Cameroon ranked 134 out of 183 countries in this year's TI rankings published on Thursday.
Source: alertnet // George Fominyen