Cabinet approves bill to legalise code of conduct for public office holders
Cabinet has approved a bill to give legal backing to the code of conduct for public office holders which President John Dramani Mahama launched in July, this year.
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The Conduct of Public Officers Bill is couched to help prevent, detect and punish corrupt acts among public office holders.
It also seeks to ensure harmony and coherence in the various pieces of anti-corruption legislation in the country.
Briefing journalists on the bill at the Flagstaff House in Accra yesterday, a deputy minister of Information and Media Relations, Mr Felix Ofosu Kwakye, said the bill was yet another manifestation of the government’s commitment to step up the fight against corruption.
''It is the hope that Parliament will pass the bill expeditiously to enable the President to give his assent to it,” he said.
Mr Ofosu Kwakye said the bill would give effect to Chapter 24 of the 1992 Constitution, which borders on conflict of interest concerning public office holders.
For instance, he said, the bill would hold public officers liable whenever they flouted the code of conduct.
The deputy minister said anti-corruption legislation such as the Financial Administration Act, the Public Procurement Act, the Internal Audit Agency Act and the Audit Service Act all provided anti-corruption measures but were scattered.
Therefore, he said, the bill would serve as a coherent anti-corruption legislation in the country.
Besides, he said, it incorporated and domesticated international conventions such as the United Nations Convention against Corruption and the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption.
Mr Ofosu Kwakye said the bill made provision for persons to lodge complaints of suspicious practices by public officers.