In exercise of the powers conferred by sections 127 and 133 of the Anti-Corruption Act of Bhutan, 2006, the Anti-Corruption Commission hereby makes these Rules for providing further provisions on or setting procedures for Asset Declaration by Public Servants.
Chapter I
Preliminary
Short title
1. These Rules may be called the Asset Declaration Rules, 2008.
Coverage
2. These Rules shall apply to all public servants, except those engaged in casual or temporary jobs.
Exclusion
3. The ACC may, by order, exclude from the application of these Rules any other public servant if it determines that such exclusion would not affect adversely the public confidence in the integrity of the government.
Purpose
4. These Rules implement sections (50), (115), (116) and (127) through (132) of the Act by:
(a) prescribing declaration frequency and obligation under the Rules.
(b) specifying the declaration contents and its audit and investigation upon complaint;
(c) requiring the declaration processing, registration and maintenance.
(d) prescribing the consequences for breach of these Rules.
(e) ensuring public access to declarations and prescribing penalties for unlawful obtain or uses of declarations and
(f) offering such other guidance as necessary for the effective and efficient implementation or administration of these Rules.
Chapter II
Declaration frequency
Declaration frequency
5. A public servant shall make his declaration:
(a) within three months after assumption of office as from the first day of his service.
(b) annually thereafter between February 1 and March 31.
(c) three months prior to vacation of office in the case of a fixed term public servant and along with resignation notification in the case of other public servants and
(d) within a week upon unforeseen vacation of office / termination.
6. If the declaration of a public servant arising from his assumption of office or vacation of office coincides with annual declaration, that declaration shall meet the requirement.
Declaration obligation
7. It shall be the duty of a public servant to ensure timely and correct filing of his asset declaration, including those of his unemployed spouse, child and dependant to the designated agency.
8. The Chairperson and members of the ACC shall complete and file declarations of their assets, including those of their unemployed spouse, child and dependant to the ACC Secretariat. The Chairperson shall also submit a copy of the declaration to the Royal Secretariat.
Reminder and form
9. The agencies shall, each year or as may be required, distribute a copy of the prescribed declaration form and remind a public servant within its jurisdiction to make his declaration.
Power decentralization
10. The ACC may decentralize the administration of declarations in respect of schedule I public servants as and when it deems fit.
Chapter III
Declaration contents
Declaration contents
11. A public servant’s declaration shall contain information on the following:
(a) reason for the declaration and his other personal information including his spouse, child and dependant.
(b) assets comprising properties such as land and building, shares and stocks, vehicle/machineries, deposits, convertible assets, intellectual property rights, and other assets and activities including their mode of acquisition, situation, registration number and estimated value.
(c) income from employment, rental, deposits, securities, shares, hiring and other sources and
(d) liabilities including loans, mortgages and children’s education expenses.
Disproportionate asset investigation
12. The ACC shall audit any declaration filed by any public servant, including the civil servants to assess any disproportionate change in assets.
13. The RCSC shall, in respect of only civil servants other than the schedule I public servants, audit any declaration to assess any disproportionate change in assets and
14. For the purpose of Rules (12) and (13), the ACC or RCSC shall have access to or be provided information contained in any declaration by the respective agencies.
Illegal acquisition to be state property
15. Any asset acquired illegally shall belong to the government and become State property; and
16. An asset acquired by a public servant shall be considered acquired illegally, unless the contrary is proved in the following cases:
(a) not fairly attributable to legal sources.
(b) cannot justify the acquisition of assets from a legal source or
(c) refuse or provide wrong information required by the ACC or its authorized agency regarding the sources of acquisition of asset.
17. A public servant shall have, for the purposes of Rule (16), the burden of proof to establish by a preponderance of evidence that an asset has been acquired by legal means.
Annual declaration audit
18. The RAA shall carry out a yearly audit of agencies to determine compliance by public servant, designated asset administrator and head of agency.
19. For the purpose of Rule 18, the RAA shall have access to or be provided information contained in any declaration by the agencies.
Chapter IV
Declaration processing
Declaration processing
20. A public servant shall strictly fill in all applicable information and/or make true and detailed declarations as required by these Rules.
21. The agencies shall, upon receipt of a declaration, evaluate it to determine whether or not a public servant has complied with the provisions of these Rules.
22. Every declaration shall be deemed properly filed only if all applicable information or details required therein are provided by a public servant.
23. The agencies shall direct a public servant who has incomplete data in his declaration, by order, to file his declaration or correct or supply the desired information within a nonextendable period of ten working days as from the day of receipt of such order.
24. The agencies shall, within five working days as from the day of expiring the nonextendible period of ten working days, prepare a list of public servants, who:
(a) filed their declarations but without complete data and
(b) did not file their declarations.
25. The respective agencies may report in the press, the list prepared under Rule (24), for dissemination of information to the public.
Asset declaration data base
26. On receiving a declaration, the respective agencies shall cause the particulars of the declaration, including personal information, income, assets, liabilities, as well as the previous year’s declaration and sanctions, if any, to be entered in a data base.
Declaration maintenance
27. Every declaration made under these Rules shall be maintained for a period of ten years as from the day of its receipt by the agencies unless otherwise required.
28. The agencies shall ensure safety of declarations filed by a public servant.
Asset Administrator designation
29. The respective agencies shall designate an appropriate existing public servant as an asset administrator who shall be in-charge of asset declarations of the agencies in accordance with these Rules and the terms of reference that may be issued from time to time by the ACC.
Chapter V
Penalty for Breach
Complaint against agencies
30. A complaint concerning an allegation or suspected contravention of these Rules shall be made to:
(a) the Ethics and Credential Committee of the National Assembly, if it is against the ACC.
(b) the ACC, if it is either against the RCSC, schedule I public servants and agencies and
(c) the RCSC, if it is against non-schedule I public servants.
Complaint against public servants
31. A complaint concerning an allegation or suspected contravention of these Rules by a public servant shall be made to his head of agency.
Investigation upon complaint
32. The Ethics and Credential Committee of the National Assembly/ ACC/ RCSC/ head of agency shall investigate the matter within their respective jurisdiction, unless the person against whom the complaint has been lodged makes a written admission of the contravention.
Investigation report
33. The Ethics and Credential Committee of the National Assembly /ACC/ RCSC/ head of agency shall prepare an investigation report, which may be reported in the press for dissemination of information to the public.
Schedule I public servant
34. It shall be grounds for impeachment or removal from office, if a schedule I public servant:
(a) without reasonable justification refuses or fails to make declaration.
(b) knowingly conceals or makes false declaration or
(c) otherwise breaches any provision of these Rules.
Non-schedule I public servant
35. A non-schedule I public servant shall be imposed a fine of an amount equivalent to ninety days’ daily minimum wage, if he:
(a) without reasonable justification refuses or fails to make declaration.
(b) knowingly conceals or makes false declaration or
(c) otherwise breaches any provision of these Rules.
36. A non-schedule I public servant who, without a reasonable justification, refuses or fails to declare for the second time shall be a ground for removal or dismissal from service, if proven in formal administrative proceedings.
Respective agency heads & asset administrators
37. The head of an agency and asset administrator who without reasonable justification, refuses or fails to perform his duties in relation to the processing of declarations or otherwise breaches any provision of these Rules shall be imposed a fine of an amount equivalent to eleven months’ daily minimum wage.
Deposit of Fines
38. All fines collected for the purposes of Rules (35) and (37) shall be deposited in government revenue account. Remedies not exclusive
39. If any violation of these Rules is punishable by a heavier penalty under another law, that law shall apply.
Chapter VI
Public Access to Declaration
Public access to declaration
40. Any declaration or copy thereof may be made available to any applicant in person upon written application after 5 working days as from the day of receipt of declaration by the ACC, RCSC or head of an agency, during office hours free of charge.
41. Every such application shall be submitted in person and contain the following:
(a) the applicant’s name, occupation and address.
(b) the applicant’s awareness of the prohibitions on the obtaining or use of the declarations for unlawful purposes and
(c) the applicant’s intent to obtain or use the information.
42. The agency shall inform the public servant whose declaration has been sought by an applicant, in writing.
Unlawful use prohibitions
43. It shall be unlawful for any person to obtain or use a declaration:
(a) for any unlawful purpose.
(b) for any commercial purpose, other than by news and communications media for dissemination to the general public.
(c) for determining a financial soundness of any individual or
(d) for use, directly or indirectly, in soliciting money.
Penalty for unlawful use
44. The Office of Attorney General may institute a civil suit against any person who obtains or uses a declaration for any purpose prohibited by Rule (43).
45. The Court in which such suit is brought may assess against such person a fine of an amount equivalent to ninety days’ minimum wage.
Remedy not exclusive
46. The remedy under Rule (45) shall be in addition to any other remedy available under
statutory or common law.
Chapter VII
Miscellany
Rules of construction
47. As used in these Rules, the singular shall include the plural and the masculine shall include the feminine and vice versa.
Definitions
48. As used in these Rules:
a) ACC means the Anti-Corruption Commission of Bhutan established under the Act 2006.
b) Act means the Anti-Corruption Act of Bhutan, 2006.
c) Armed Forces mean Royal Body Guard, Royal Bhutan Army and Royal Bhutan Police.
d) Asset has the same meaning as in the Act, including income and liability.
e) Casual or temporary jobs mean those positions which are not career positions and employment in these positions are usually for a limited period, e.g. from a few hours to a few months, or even intermittent.
f) NGOs (non-governmental organization) are legally constituted organizations created by private organizations or people with no participation or representation of any government.
g) Constitutional Office Holders have the same meaning as in the Constitution of the Kingdom of Bhutan.
h) Convertible assets mean and include works of art, jewellery, gold, and other objects exceeding estimated fair market value of Nu.100, 000 per item.
i) Declarant means the public servants who are required by the Act or these Rules to declare their income, assets and liabilities.
j) Declaration means the income, assets and liabilities declarations made under these Rules.
k) Dependant means an individual, including his children entirely dependent the income of the individual.
l) Fair market cost means the value established by reference to the retail cost of similar items of like quality or by looking to what would be paid by the general public.
m) Financial institutions have the same meaning as in the Financial Institutions Act.
n) Fixed term public servant means a public servant whose service tenure is limited by law to certain term as opposed to regular career public servants.
o) Form means the income, assets and liabilities declaration form prescribed by these Rules in Annexure II
p) Members of the Constitutional Offices mean the members or commissioners other than the chiefs and chairpersons.
q) Minimum wage means the one as prescribed by the Government from time to time.
r) Public servant means public servant as defined by the Act, including any individual working in any organization that uses public resources;
s) RAA means the Royal Audit Authority established under the Audit Act of Bhutan.
t) RCSC means the Royal Civil Service Commission.
u) Respective agencies mean the ACC in respect of the schedule I public servants and Heads of Agencies in respect of public servants other than schedule I.
v) Agency means Ministries, Dzongkhags and other organisations that administer and manage AD systems as per the Act.
w) Rules mean the Asset Declaration Rules made by the ACC under the Act.
x) Unemployment means not employed in any public sector organisation where AD system exists and even if one is employed in the private sector including selfemployment, it is unemployment for the purposes of these Rules.
List of Annexures