Well done, Mr Amidu
Arku Jasmine
Editorials
No country is free from corruption, while the impact of corruption on the lives of citizens varies from country to country.
The incidence of corruption depends on the legal framework in a country and the determination of the political leadership to make the practice a high-risk venture.
Our Constitution frowns on corruption and enjoins the State, in Article 35 Clause 8, to “take steps to eradicate corrupt practices and abuse of power”.
In many instances, public officials have found themselves neck deep in corruption because of the abuse of power by circumventing the rules for personal gain.
The effects of corruption on the economy and the lives of developing countries, such as those in Africa, are quite phenomenal.
We must find ways of stopping corrupt officials from siphoning money from the public purse for causes other than the public good.
Fortunately, the State has a legal framework that can expose the activities of irresponsible public officials who indulge in corruption and the same structures can be used to punish those greedy officials.
We have in our midst the very poor who earn less than a dollar a day but we are not ready to deal ruthlessly with those who are bent on ‘breaking’ into the state coffers.
It is important for leaders to desist from politicising the incidence of corruption, so that the fight against the canker will be all-embracing and not perceived to be political vendetta.
The use of public resources must be made transparent and those in charge enjoined to be accountable to the people on the use of all public resources.
The Constitution has a well-built separation of powers mechanism to make each arm of government accountable to one another.
The Executive arm ensures that there is law and order in society, while Parliament makes the laws and holds the purse string of the government, with the Judiciary acting as a bulwark against the powers of the Executive and the Legislature.
In a country where our governments have to rely on donors to balance the budget, each borrowed dollar, euro and pound sterling must be spent to lift the people up from extreme poverty.
Indeed, corruption has caused pain and suffering to the common people who are unable to reap the dividends of democratic governance because there is more focus on rights, not our obligations and responsibilities.
The rapid deterioration of public infrastructure such as roads, schools and hospitals a few months after they have been completed can only be attributed to corruption, patronage, influence peddling, rent seeking, extortion and abuse of power.
Our inability to curtail corruption makes people wonder whether there are any opportunities available to them to promote self-esteem.
It is for this reason that we salute Mr Martin Amidu, a former Attorney-General, for his singular efforts at fighting corruption in the system.
His fight against the payment of judgement debts to people who are not deserving of it paid off last week when the Supreme Court ordered Waterville Holdings to pay back 25 million euros to the state.
Coming in the wake of statements that the state did not have a case against Waterville, the Daily Graphic thinks Mr Amidu deserves an ovation for securing this judgement that has made Ghana rich by millions of euros at a time it needs every pesewa for the development process.
Corruption in Ghana is pervasive in all spheres of national life, but the sectors mostly affected are the law enforcement agencies, the judiciary, the legal profession, the police, land administration, customs, the ports, the tax system and of course among politicians, especially those in government.
Corruption contributes to inadequate facilities at the hospitals and educational institutions, bad roads, insanitary environment and growing poverty.
The Daily Graphic calls on the people to join hands with Mr Amidu in a grand coalition to stop those involved in corruption in order to retrieve all stolen money belonging to the state.
The fight will succeed if all civil society groups, private companies, donors, ordinary people and government officials speak up against bribery and corruption.
The incidence of corruption depends on the legal framework in a country and the determination of the political leadership to make the practice a high-risk venture.
Our Constitution frowns on corruption and enjoins the State, in Article 35 Clause 8, to “take steps to eradicate corrupt practices and abuse of power”.
In many instances, public officials have found themselves neck deep in corruption because of the abuse of power by circumventing the rules for personal gain.
The effects of corruption on the economy and the lives of developing countries, such as those in Africa, are quite phenomenal.
We must find ways of stopping corrupt officials from siphoning money from the public purse for causes other than the public good.
Fortunately, the State has a legal framework that can expose the activities of irresponsible public officials who indulge in corruption and the same structures can be used to punish those greedy officials.
We have in our midst the very poor who earn less than a dollar a day but we are not ready to deal ruthlessly with those who are bent on ‘breaking’ into the state coffers.
It is important for leaders to desist from politicising the incidence of corruption, so that the fight against the canker will be all-embracing and not perceived to be political vendetta.
The use of public resources must be made transparent and those in charge enjoined to be accountable to the people on the use of all public resources.
The Constitution has a well-built separation of powers mechanism to make each arm of government accountable to one another.
The Executive arm ensures that there is law and order in society, while Parliament makes the laws and holds the purse string of the government, with the Judiciary acting as a bulwark against the powers of the Executive and the Legislature.
In a country where our governments have to rely on donors to balance the budget, each borrowed dollar, euro and pound sterling must be spent to lift the people up from extreme poverty.
Indeed, corruption has caused pain and suffering to the common people who are unable to reap the dividends of democratic governance because there is more focus on rights, not our obligations and responsibilities.
The rapid deterioration of public infrastructure such as roads, schools and hospitals a few months after they have been completed can only be attributed to corruption, patronage, influence peddling, rent seeking, extortion and abuse of power.
Our inability to curtail corruption makes people wonder whether there are any opportunities available to them to promote self-esteem.
It is for this reason that we salute Mr Martin Amidu, a former Attorney-General, for his singular efforts at fighting corruption in the system.
His fight against the payment of judgement debts to people who are not deserving of it paid off last week when the Supreme Court ordered Waterville Holdings to pay back 25 million euros to the state.
Coming in the wake of statements that the state did not have a case against Waterville, the Daily Graphic thinks Mr Amidu deserves an ovation for securing this judgement that has made Ghana rich by millions of euros at a time it needs every pesewa for the development process.
Corruption in Ghana is pervasive in all spheres of national life, but the sectors mostly affected are the law enforcement agencies, the judiciary, the legal profession, the police, land administration, customs, the ports, the tax system and of course among politicians, especially those in government.
Corruption contributes to inadequate facilities at the hospitals and educational institutions, bad roads, insanitary environment and growing poverty.
The Daily Graphic calls on the people to join hands with Mr Amidu in a grand coalition to stop those involved in corruption in order to retrieve all stolen money belonging to the state.
The fight will succeed if all civil society groups, private companies, donors, ordinary people and government officials speak up against bribery and corruption.