Public urged to report suspicious behaviours
A social governance expert has called on the citizenry to exercise their social responsibility by speaking out against persons who engage in corruption and steal public funds.
Advertisement
A lecturer at the Institute of Local Government Studies (ILGS), Mr Fred Oduro, also encouraged the citizenry to report suspicious behaviours to the appropriate authorities.
In Ghana, anonymous whistle-blowers platforms exist for people to report suspicious activities without fear of having their identities discovered, as a means to help combat corruption in the country.
Forum
At a forum for members of the Ledzokuku-Krowor Municipal Assembly (LEKMA) Social Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (SPEFA) group, Mr Oduro, said corruption often went undetected and those it affected were the best persons to offer insider information, which is a decisive factor in investigating and prosecuting.
The forum, which was on public procurement and asset management at the municipal assembly level, was organised by Intervention Forum (IF), a non-governmental organisation, in conjunction with SNV and the ILGS. It formed part of LEKMA’s SPEFA group’s fourth quarter meeting to review its previous activities.
Members of SPEFA include representatives of women’s groups, residents associations, persons living with disabilities, youth groups, traders associations and members of the assembly.
Mr Oduro took the citizens through the Public Procurement Law (Act 663), detailing its regulatory framework, main considerations in procurement, asset management and the acquisition and registration of assets.
He said civil society through monitoring tools such as forming procurement watchdogs and following procurement transactions electronically could ensure judicious use of state resources.
Other Trending Stories
Fighting corruption
In a welcome address, the Chief Executive Officer of IF, Mrs Nora Ollennu, said it was imperative for citizens to be abreast of the assembly’s procurement and asset management processes and called SPEFA members to share the knowledge gained at the forum with others.
She said clients or citizens complaint redress mechanisms had been instituted at LEKMA to receive the complaints of residents.
She said LEKMA received 34 complaints from residents in 2014; 41 in 2015 and 26 in 2016.
The complaints involved issues on education, unauthorised construction and encroachment, security, health, poor road network and delayed projects.
Mrs Ollennu said the main challenges facing the implementation of redress mechanisms included delays in securing feedback from the schedule officers and difficulty in verifying the complaints.
Also she said many of those who made the complaints wrote letters or called at the office of the Municipal Chief Executive, instead of using complaint forms.