THE Anti-Corruption Commission says it will move to have criminal charges brought against up to 3,500 public officials who did not declare their assets last year.

The charges will be brought if they still refuse to file for 2002/03 even after they have been notified, in writing, of the lapse. The first 100 warning letters have been sent out, as the commission moves to tackle the problem in phases that will not clog the courts.

“We have written to those who have not filed and if they do not respond they will be referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions (Kent Pantry), where criminal sanctions will apply,” said David Gray, secretary-manager of the commission.

If convicted, delinquents can face up to $200,000 in fines and/or two years in prison.

The commission was established last year to unearth corruption by public officers who abuse their positions of public trust.

Since that time, various categories of state employees – particularly those earning in excess of $2 million annually – as well as all police and military personnel, are required to declare their assets on a yearly basis.

They are also required to supply their spouses’ assets and those of any children living at home.

The intention is not to snoop into people’s lifestyles, said Gray, but to find evidence of illegal enrichment. That is, through graft, abuse of office, procuring gifts by inducement, bribery and the fraudulent use or conversion of government assets.

Many public sector employees have legitimate businesses or second jobs and income earned by those means is not the subject of the commission’s probe.

But some public servants remain a bit edgy about disclosing the sensitive information, fearing, among other things, that it may be divulged to others. Gray thinks that this fear is on the decrease.

“I don’t sense much fear now by the mere fact that many persons are coming forward with information readily,” he said.

About 11,500 filed on time last year, and with a few weeks left to go before the March 31 deadline, 10,000 have filed so far this year.

The fears about the misuse of the information gathered, Gray argued, had been greater in the early days of the commission. And he stressed that none of the personal financial information could be used to assess taxes or disclosed for any other means.

“It can’t be used, everyone at the commission is covered by a secret clause and we all have to take an oath of secrecy, any breaches of which carry severe penalties including imprisonment,” Gray said.

“The only person we can speak to is the Director of Public Prosecutions and then it is in the public domain as a court matter.”

Under the microscope are certain members of staff of parish councils, statutory organisations, revenue departments and sensitive procurement staff in departments such as the Passport Office, Customs, the Island Traffic Authority and other “selective groups”.