Five Highways Department officers have been suspended after the ICAC arrested them and 15 others for alleged corruption over the tendering and administration of the department's works contracts.

The department said today it will fully co-operate with the ICAC in the investigation and reinforce audits on the related public works contracts.

The ICAC confirmed the arrests it made on March 20 included a chief engineer, a senior engineer and three inspectors of works of the Highways Department, along with nine subcontractors, five senior executives of three construction companies, and one other person.

The arrested Highways Department staff had allegedly accepted advantages from a number of subcontractors and senior executives of construction companies mainly engaged in road-maintenance works.

In return, these department staff had allegedly disclosed tendering information and confidential documents to the subcontractors and the construction companies, helped them secure works contracts from the department, and issued excessive works orders to them.

The senior engineer and one of the subcontractors were arrested following an alleged corrupt transaction. An envelope containing $20,000 cash was recovered from the engineer.

One of the company executives arrested - a former senior directorate government officer - had allegedly attempted to exert undue influence on senior Highways Department officers to remove an engineer from his post, to avoid proper supervision his company's works.