The Ethics Secretariat is another pathetic story

A couple of months ago, I wrote a critical opinion piece on the Ethics Secretariat. Today I revisit the Secretariat by looking at its constitutional functions. As with the Commission for Human Rights and Good Governance, it is a pathetic situation where you have a constitutional body that has failed to carry out its mandate satisfactorily. You only get to hear of the Secretariat about this time of the year when all leaders are supposed to return their forms on assets etc.
Interestingly, this year the Secretariat is dead silent unlike during the Magufuli era when leaders would be warned of arrest if they didn’t comply with the schedule. So the institution was at the behest of an individual.
Looking now at the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania, Part 11, section 132, it reads:
(1) There is hereby established a Public Leaders’ Ethics Secretariat which shall have power to inquire into the behaviour and conduct of any public leader for the purpose of ensuring that the provisions of the law concerning the ethics of public leaders are duly complied with.
(2) For the purposes of this Article, the meaning of “public leader” and “code of ethics for public leaders” shall be construed in accordance with the provisions of the law concerning the ethics of public leaders or the provisions of any other law enacted by Parliament in so far as such provisions relate to the question of leadership and its interpretation.
(3) The Public Leaders’ Ethics Secretariat shall consist of the Ethics Commissioner and such other employees whose number shall be as specified by a law enacted by Parliament.
(4) Parliament shall enact a law stipulating basic rules of ethics for public leaders which shall be complied with by all persons holding public office which shall be specified by Parliament.
(5) Basic rules of ethics for public leaders shall -
(a) spell out public offices the holders of which shall be subject thereto;
(b) require persons holding certain public offices to make a formal declaration from time to time concerning their income, assets and liabilities;
(c) prohibit conduct and behaviour which tend to portray that a leader is dishonest, practices favouritism or lacks integrity, or which tends to promote or encourage corrupt practices in public affairs or jeopardises public interest;
(d) prescribe penalties which may be imposed for breaches of the code of ethics;
(e) provide for procedures, powers and practice to be applied in order  to ensure compliance with the code of ethics; and
(f) prescribe any other provisions as are appropriate or necessary for the purpose of promoting and maintaining honesty, transparency, impartiality and integrity in the conduct of public affairs and for the protection of public funds and any other public property.
(6) Parliament may, by law, provide for the dismissal or removal of a person from office for breaches of the code of ethics regardless of whether the office is elective or appointive.
With all the above functions so clearly spelt out, what is the reason for failure other than the lack of will from officials? As a result of the glaring failure, the Judge Warioba-led Constitutional Review Commission, spelt out how in the course of their assignment, ‘many Tanzanians expressed their ignominy at the enormous decline of ethics in the society and leadership.
‘Equally, the people gave the opinion that the existing Ethics Secretariat is lacking sufficient authority to take the required action on leaders who contravene the ethics of leadership...
‘By considering the views of the people and research report, the Commission proposes that leadership ethics and the leadership code be included in the constitution. Equally, it proposes that the Ethics Secretariat be changed to become a complete constitutional commission with the authority and ability to oversee leadership ethics.’
The blindingly obvious question to my mind is if the Secretariat failed in the execution of its constitutional role, what guarantee would the elevation of it in the constitution do to make a difference? At the heart of the problem, the columnist of The EastAfrican, Tee Ngugi, put it quintessentially: “All this brings us back to the fundamental dilemma. We have institutions and constitutional infrastructure, but we have irredeemably morally compromised officials...”