Transparency International Ghana is demanding the passage of the Conduct of Public Officers Bill to mandate the declaration, verification, and publication of assets of public office holders.
The anti-corruption organization says Ghana’s current asset declaration regime is outdated and ineffective in ensuring stringent reforms against public sector corruption.
These loopholes, punishable by sheer administrative penalties, are allowing public misconduct to thrive.
Corruption continues to pose a serious threat to Ghana’s development, undermining public trust, weakening institutions, and limiting the country’s ability to deliver essential services equitably.
Despite successive governments and other institutions’ seeming efforts the results have often been weak, with enforcement inconsistencies and consistent political unwillingness.
The Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition’s analysis of Ghana’s score on the Corruption Perception Index has shown that Ghana’s fight against corruption has stagnated over the past four years, and its scores have generally stayed below the 50% mark since 2012.
Fundraising Manager of Transparency International Ghana, Michael Kwame Boadi, is pushing for criminalizing conflicts of interest, seen as the root of corruption.
He proposes attention on political parties and campaign financing, not only focusing on parties but candidates as well, to improve accountability.
“Assert declaration regime in Ghana is not fit for purpose and must be reviewed and amended. The passage of the Conduct of Public Officers’ bill will amend the declaration regime and allow for declaration, verification and publication. That’s the first step to curing public sector corruption.
“Conflict of interest should be criminalized. It’s at the heart of every corruption. We cannot continue to have administrative sanctions against it. We must look at the cost of the election, take the burden of accountability from parties alone, to the candidates as well,” he said.
The Africa Centre for Energy Policy, in collaboration with the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition and Transparency International Ghana, in a bid to spark anti-corruption discussions, held a forum to assess Ghana’s anti-corruption endeavors.
Stakeholders engaged in a forward-looking dialogue needed to translate political commitments into long-term structural reforms.
Michael Kwame Boadi admonished that corruption assessment should be extensive.
“We have always attributed it to culture, poverty and apathy and distrust in institutions. But there are other inherent structural weaknesses and injustices that have worked against the fight against corruption. We aimed to explore other perspectives that contribute to corruption,” he said.
The forum also shared detailed and concerted approaches to tackling corruption.
CHRAJ sub-regional director, Samuel Asante Yeboah, is entreating legal institutions to fast track corruption cases and reduce adjournments.
“Assuming a contractor is supposed to contract a road and uses half of required resources and keeps the rest. And later the road develops a pothole that causes an accident and death of citizens. Who is responsible for that?
“So corruption has grave danger not only in reckless use of money assets, but lives and the future of generations. Our courts have a duty to fast-track corruption cases to help us resolve this canker. The legal process should not take long. I believe dedicated attention should be given to corruption issues,” he said.
Ashanti regional minister, Dr. Frank Amoakohene, also added that, “In the Ashanti Region, we remain steadfast in complementing these efforts by ensuring that government projects and interventions are delivered with transparency, efficiency, and integrity. We work closely with oversight institutions such as the Internal Audit Agency and the Auditor-General to strengthen public financial management and prevent leakages.”
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