The cabinet is set to review, barring any unforeseen circumstances, a legislative initiative by Justice Minister George Floridis for the creation of the Digital Registry for Monitoring Corruption Cases, marking the project’s entry into its final phase before public consultation. This represents an extensive institutional intervention that aims to fill a long-standing gap in recording and monitoring corruption cases, which today are handled in a fragmented manner across multiple different authorities.
What the Digital Corruption Case Registry provides
The proposed framework envisions the creation of a unified electronic platform where every corruption case will be recorded from the initial investigation stage. As Deputy Justice Minister Ioannis Bougas emphasized during his participation in the European Union Justice Ministers Council, the Digital Registry will enable continuous monitoring of each case’s progress and mutual information sharing among all involved agencies, from audit and prosecutorial authorities to the judiciary.
According to the plan, the Digital Registry for Monitoring Corruption Cases will systematically include and track all cases related to corruption offenses, from the beginning of preliminary examination or pre-investigation procedures through to the issuance of final court decisions. Cases will be classified based on a predetermined catalog of corruption offenses, as defined by national legislation and international conventions ratified by the country.
The central objective of this initiative is to eliminate a fundamental “thorn” that has been repeatedly highlighted at both national and European levels: the lack of comprehensive oversight of each case’s progress due to the involvement of multiple different services and the absence of a unified monitoring mechanism. The new system aims to achieve interoperability between all competent authorities and immediate updates on critical procedural stages, without overlaps or information loss.
Additionally, the Registry will provide anonymized and aggregate data regarding case characteristics, timelines, investigation results, and imposed sanctions. This information can be utilized to enhance transparency and accountability, as well as for evidence-based public policy formulation in corruption prevention and combating. Access to the Digital Registry will be granted to prosecutorial and judicial authorities, the Justice Ministry, and all agencies involved in investigating and prosecuting related offenses.
The working group
For the preparation and creation of the Digital Registry, Justice Minister George Floridis has established a Working Group with participation from all competent agencies. Through this specific initiative, the Justice Ministry aims to lay the groundwork for a modern, unified, and transparent corruption case monitoring system, aligned with European requirements and international best practices, paving the way for public consultation and the final submission of the bill to Parliament.
