The Corruption and Crime Commission (CCC) has published its review of a substandard investigation by the Department of Communities (DoC) into allegations of bribery by DoC officers.
According to the Commission, its report, Review of an inadequate investigation by the Department of Communities into allegations of bribery tabled in State Parliament, underlined the need for heads of all public sector Agencies to have a robust integrity function in place.
The report detailed the Department’s response to information from a member of the public that one or more of its employees may have been accepting bribes from potential tenants in exchange for being allocated priority or expedited public housing.
In a statement, the CCC said the report had a critical lesson for all public sector Agencies — that they had responsibility for managing and properly addressing serious misconduct risks as they arose, even when the Commission had oversight.
“Both the Commission and the Western Australian public rely on Agencies to take seriously their responsibility to manage and properly investigate serious misconduct allegations and to have an adequate structure and procedure to manage serious misconduct risks,” the CCC said.
“DoC’s poor communication, recordkeeping and investigative practices seriously inhibited the ability to properly address the allegations received on this occasion.”
DoC has advised the Commission it will monitor public housing allocations, consider system audits and reviews of its policies and procedures as a result of the review.
“While this is a constructive response to the alleged misconduct, it does not address the deficiencies in this investigation,” the CCC said.
“The lesson for all Agencies is that risk of serious misconduct is primarily for them to manage,” it said.
“Heads of Government Agencies must have a robust integrity function in place.”
It said DoC had since implemented a new Integrity and Standards Unit to support the development of an integrity framework and supporting system, tools and training for staff.
“In view of this response, the Commission makes no recommendations,” the CCC said.
The Commission’s 9-page report can be accessed at this PS News link.
