UNODC and CGU celebrate the International Day against Corruption

Brasília, 08 December 2014 - "One hard worked real is worthier than one hundred stolen". That is the thinking of Adilson Luiz da Cruz, a São Paulo's taxi driver who found in his cab 40 World Cup match entry tickets and returned them all to their original holders. Adilson was awarded with UNODC Award "Outstanding Person in the Fighting against Corruption", in an event hosted today in Brasília.

     Adilson da Cruz is awarded by the UNODC

The Union's Comptroller General (CGU) chief-Minister, Jorge Hage Sobrinho, was also rewarded for his trenchant action ahead of CGU's fight against corruption.  

The award ceremony took place as part of the celebrations of the International Day against Corruption, set up by the United Nations in 2003, by means of a Brazilian proposal.

In the event, organized by CGU in partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the chief-Minister made a pronouncement highlighting Brazil's breakthroughs in the fight against corruption and the great challenges the country still have to face to ensure more effective and transparent policies.

The chief-Minister Hage states that, even with the fairly short period of existence of the CGU, major advances in fighting the corruption were accomplished, "we strictly follow the four main functions of the CGU, which are: the internal control of the Executive Power; performing auditing, guidelines and recommendations for federal employees' activities; the correction with repressive actions to agents and companies; transparency, to allow social control and the ombudsman, a key-channel for popular participation; and through these activities we have managed to avoid and correct many cases of corruption".

According to Rafael Franzini, the Representative of the Liaison and Partnership Office of UNODC in Brazil, corruption poses serious problems to society: "corruption is a tool used by the organized crime, because for the existence of trafficking in persons, arms and drugs, corruption is necessary. That is why UNODC claims the population to help breaking the corruption chain".

Moreover, according to Franzini, the partnership between UNODC and CGU is a great example of how the United Nations can work together with the countries in coping with such a complex phenomenon as corruption.

Jorge Hage, chief-Minister being rewarded by the UNODC

The ambassador of the United Kingdom in Brazil, Alexander Ellis, said that the major cost of corruption is the great distrust that is generated from illicit activities. "With greater lack of confidence, the creation of more laws and processes become even stricter. Corruption is a source of social injustice, because those who lose most in this chain are the poor, who have denied their fundamental rights; as public resources are diverted", Concludes Ellis.

Representatives from the other agencies responsible for defending the Brazilian public patrimony, such as the Federal Audit Court, Public Prosecutor's Office, Internal Revenue Service, Council for Financial Activities Control and Attorney General of the Union, also attended the event. During the ceremony, along with a presentation by the CGU of the actions implemented during the past year to combat corruption, there was the awarding of the winners of the 6th Drawing and Writing Contest and the 2nd of Best Practices Contest, both hosted by CGU.

At the end of the ceremony, CGU's chief-Minister announced, at the press conference, that he sent his resignation letter to the President, Mrs Dilma Rousseff.  According to Hage, after 12 years in the CGU, nine of them as a minister, it was time to rest and let future generations continue this work. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Opening Cerimony 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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