Three anti-corruption organizations –the Hay Derecho Foundation, the Foundation for Justice and the Civic Action Association against Corruption– have filed an appeal before the Administrative Litigation Chamber of the High Court of Justice of the Valencian Community (TSJCV) against the repeal of the Code of Ethics and the dissolution of the Ethics Committee of the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency (AVAF).
The resource also has the support from several former members of the Ethics Committee, who consider that the repeal of the Code of Ethics has been carried out without following the legally established procedure, in a performance that puts the independence and internal control of the institution at risk.
A repeal that does not comply with the law
The AVAF Code of Ethics was approved in 2022 through a participatory process that included unions and Agency staff. This document established principles of good governance and standards of conduct applicable to all its staff, including the obligation to submit declarations of assets and activities to avoid conflicts of interest. In addition, it regulated the creation of an independent Ethics Committee, composed mainly of external experts, responsible for monitoring compliance and managing an internal complaints channel.
However, in September 2024, the new director of the AVAF, Eduardo Beut, proposed by PP and supported by Vox, repealed the Code of Ethics through Resolution No. 904, by eliminating both the Ethics Committee and its internal complaints mailboxThis decision came amid a confrontation between AVAF management and the Ethics Committee, following the opening of internal investigations against the director himself for various complaints.
The repeal of the Code contravenes the provisions of Law 1/2022 on Transparency and Good Governance of the Valencian Community, which requires the AVAF to have a code of ethics. Furthermore, the Agency's Regulatory Plan for 2024 provided for its review and development, but in no case its elimination.
The weakening of internal control mechanisms
The elimination of the Ethics Committee and the internal complaints channel represents a regression in independence and control of the Agency, weakening oversight mechanisms. The new complaints system created by the AVAF management, the SII-AVAF, does not maintain the same guarantee of independence, since its management falls to a body appointed directly by the director.
According to the complaint, Beut's decision clearly does not serve the public interest, as the repeal was carried out without a prior evaluation procedure and without consulting the Ethics Committee. Furthermore, no transitional regime was established for pending complaints, which creates a legal loophole in the processing of open files.
The disappearance of this independent body eliminates an essential control system for accountability within the AVAF. "The independence of the Ethics Committee was a key guarantee that complaints about malpractice would be evaluated without external pressures", the plaintiffs explain. Furthermore, the lack of a transitional regime has left several cases unresolved, some of which directly affect the current management of the Agency.
Subsequently, and some time after the judicial appeal against the elimination of the Code of Ethics had been filed, the AVAF filed a new draft Code which, among other things, eliminates the sanctioning regime and weakens the supervisory body. By eliminating the sanctioning regime, the Code of Ethics becomes, in practice, devoid of any real effectiveness, reduced to a mere non-binding declaration of intent without mechanisms to guarantee compliance.
A step back in the fight against corruption
Safira Cantos, general director of Hay Derecho, added that "dismantling the internal controls of the AVAF is a direct attack on transparency and calls into question the Agency's commitment to the principles of legality, independence and effectiveness that it is responsible for defending."
For its part, José María Tomás and Tío, president of the Foundation for Justice, stated that the elimination of the Code of Ethics and the Ethics Committee "is a serious setback in the fight against corruption in the Valencian Community."
"This decision disarms the internal control and surveillance mechanisms within the Agency, and weakens an entity that once was a European reference of the fight against corruption," he added Antonio Penadés, president of Civic Action.
The plaintiff organizations hope that the TSJCV declare the nullity of Resolution No. 904 and reinstate the Code of Ethics and the Ethics Committee as essential elements to ensure compliance with the principles of good governance in the AVAF.