The Anti-Corruption Commission imposed over Nu 7 M as a penalty for individuals who have not declared their assets and those who declared after the deadline for the declaration year 2023. This is an increase of around Nu 5 M compared to the fine imposed in the previous year.
In 2023, more than 25,800 individuals were required to declare their assets. Of them, around 930 submitted their declarations late, while a little over 600 failed to declare their assets.
From the total of over 1,530 late and non-declarants, penalties were imposed on 905 individuals. Close to 630 had their penalties waived based on the justifications submitted.
The commission imposed a total penalty of around Nu 7.5 M. Of it, a little over Nu 1 M were imposed on late declarants and more than Nu 6 M on non-declarants.
The commission collected over Nu 5.5 M in total, nearly Nu 1 M from late declarants and more than Nu 4.6 M from non-declarants.
According to the report, 61 individuals failed to pay the penalty. The list was forwarded to the Royal Audit Authority for further action and recorded in the Integrity Vetting System for deterrence.
The Integrity Vetting System is a web-based system designed to generate Integrity Vetting Reports by consolidating fact-based information from the ACC’s Complaint and Investigation Management System and Asset Declaration System.
According to the commission, there’s a need for greater awareness and stricter compliance to uphold the integrity and objectives of the asset declaration system.
The objective of the Asset Declaration is to detect and prevent illicit enrichment and promote public trust through accountability, among others.
Tashi Dekar
Edited by Phub Gyem
