Corruption index and matters arising
Of the myriad of problems facing the world today, corruption – a matter of great concern due to its disastrous consequences on developmental programmes – has become a source of worry to many well-meaning citizens irrespective of where they find themselves.
Ghana, like other countries, shares the view that corruption ought to be dealt with in a manner that can effectively save the nation huge resources for the promotion of its developmental agenda.
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This is a concern shared by many people in this country even though some Ghanaians do not appear prepared to help wage a successful war against the canker.
At the Second National Dialogue on the topic: “Public Accountability: Abuse of Office” recently organised by the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), the Ambassador and Head of Delegation of the European Union in Ghana, Mrs Diana Acconcia, commended the government of Ghana for taking bold measures to deal with corruption in the country.
According to her, the implementation of the paperless port system and the migration of some public institutions such as the Lands Commission, Ministry of Tourism and the Passport Office onto the various digital platforms were commendable.
For the years 2018 and 2019, Ghana showed some improvement on the global rankings. According to the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII), the local chapter of Transparency International, these were positive developments because they marked a departure from the continuous drop experienced by the country since 2015.
While this news is most welcome, we need to do more as a country to reduce corruption to the barest minimum since a successful fight against this canker can go a long way to help in the attainment of “Ghana-Beyond-Aid”.
It is common knowledge that corruption is a hindrance to economic growth because national resources that should have been used for the development of roads, building of schools and construction of dams for agriculture purposes and many more are all channeled into the pockets of a few individuals who feed fat on it and put up big mansions for themselves and their families contrary to the growth of the entire nation. This amounts to wicked and selfish acts that draw back the clock of progress.
Sometimes, we wonder why in places such as Africa, individuals tend to have more money kept in foreign accounts than the collective wealth owned by their own countries, making it impossible to translate national wealth into prosperity for the poor. Indeed, millions of dollars from state confers are spent for selfish purposes while citizens may not have access to good roads, clean water and medical care.
Huge sums of money are spent by these individuals on expensive vehicles, as well as first-class leisure trips – not meaningful working visits – around the world. While some of these individuals have millions or billions of dollars in their private foreign bank accounts, their own countries continue to wallow in abject poverty.
Outside Africa, the same negative trends on corruption prevail. Many countries in Asia, including public and private entities, have not been able to avoid acts of corruption.
All these countries agree that corruption is bad and that there is the need to fight it. However, this nefarious act prevails among various institutions, including government Ministries, Departments and Agencies, not forgetting private sector bodies or organisations.
Thus, the paradox of the situation is that while a few individuals are found to be very rich, the majority of the people wallow in extremely unpalatable poverty.
When it comes to corruption as a global issue, various parts of the world can be seen to be involved. Thus, this situation is common not only in Africa but also in the Americas, Asia and Europe, even though the practice looks more widespread in certain places than others.
We know, for example, that not long after leaving office in 2002, the 81st President of Nicaragua, Arnoldo Alemav, was arrested on corruption charges. The charges involved one hundred million dollars of public funds.
Eventually, he was convicted of crimes such as fraud, embezzlement and money laundering and was sentenced to twenty years imprisonment. Other members in his administration were also arrested on similar charges.
In places such as Ukraine, Peru, Haiti, Serbia, Philippines and Indonesia, the world has seen strong contenders in corruption situations that have led to the creation of wealth in the private accounts of individuals while their respective countries continue to suffer due to widespread poverty.
Ghana`s improvement in the 2018 Global Corruption Perception Index, though not the most desirable, is an indication that the people in this country can fight corruption once the appropriate leadership is in place. Many individuals and organisations are engaged in corrupt practices in
Ghana and that explains why the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has found it necessary to set up the Office of the Special Prosecutor to show that as a leader, he does not condone corrupt acts.
It is expected that as the office has started to strike hard on suspected corruption matters we will all stand up in support of the office for fair trials so that money can possibly be saved and recovered for the country.
Everyone must note that it is not only the Office of the Special Prosecutor that can fight against and discourage corruption, but that each of us as citizens of this country also has a role to play to make the fight against corruption a successful one!
The writer is the Director of Corporate Communication, Ghana Standards Authority.E-mail: [email protected]
