ACU Says ‘Ghost’ Workers ‘Eliminated’

After a ceremony commemorating International Anti-Corruption Day on Friday, Mr. Yentieng told reporters the government campaign to rid itself of “ghost officials” that started in 2012 had led to the “elimination” of corrupt officials who did not come to work, took their salaries and “cheated the state.”


He did not elaborate on the 80 percent statistic or what it was based on.


He said law enforcement, in addition to pay raises for low-paid government officials, helped the ACU clear out bureaucrats collecting paychecks from the government while not working.


Those who had participated in the scam did not dare to do it again and corrupt government officials who did had been arrested and convicted, he said.


“I arrested a few of them and [sent them] to the court,” he said. “The government has agreed to change to a new system.


“We have requested to increase the salary for contract officials at the Public Works and Transport Ministry’s department of the public and gardeners, who get paid 160,000 riel [about $40], which is not enough to survive on.


“I did not arrest them because we recognize that it is an actual difficulty.”


He told reporters that one of the biggest problems in tackling the issue was provincial work by civil servants, some of whom had the intention of cheating the state and knew few people would scrutinize their paperwork.


“Mission money to the provinces is also a big part of the ghost officials [issue],” he said. “There were three people, but they put five on the list.


“They went on a mission for three days, but they put five days. So another two officials and two days are ghost.


“Now, we have removed it because that money was given [and it is] more than enough to spend, so they cannot cheat anymore. It is a great success.”


In spite of their success in stopping the practice, the ACU continues to receive a litany of complaints about officials who had their names on government work lists but never came to their jobs.


People are also still concerned about the salaries taken by accountants or unit chiefs, who either split the paychecks of “ghost officials” with their staff or keep it for themselves.


Mr. Yentieng said the number of complaints had decreased in 2016.


San Chey, the executive director of the Affiliated Network for Social Accountability, said the success in ridding the government of ghost officials is the result of administrative reforms and better institutional management.


“I think the elimination of ghost names is the result of reforms more than the use of the corruption law, and I think the government should expand it and study the losses on this issue to allow the public to evaluate it and make recommendations,” he said.


The Kingdom has had a longstanding problem with ghost officials and has spent decades trying to purge absent workers from their salary rolls.


Recent ACU reports have not released definitive figures on the number of ghost names found.


The ghost official problem has taken a toll on confidence in the government and the rule of law, which has been reflected in a number of indexes and reports about Cambodia in recent years.


Deputy Prime Minister Sok An said during a meeting with a delegation from the International Monetary Fund in 2010 that ghost officials were costing the government more than $2 million every year.

http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/33008/ ... inated---/

San Chey,[b] the executive director of the Affiliated Network for Social Accountability, [/b]said the success in ridding the government of ghost officials is the result of administrative reforms and better institutional management.

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Is the job of the executive director of the Affiliated Network for Social Accountability,,, to investigate why some government officers appoint their family into jobs ahead of the thousands of others that are probably more qualified and would apply for the job,,,,, if it was advertised ?