Let’s change our mindset about corruption — First Deputy Speaker
The First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Mr Joe Osei Wusu, has called for a complete change in the mindset of Ghanaians if the country is to defeat corruption.
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He said the Special Prosecutor’s Bill would not achieve much if Ghanaians did not stop engaging in acts of corruption and other vices.
“However well we craft this law, it may not be sufficient in itself to wholly curb corruption and impunity if we do not develop a new ethic, culture and mindset that are sufficiently arrogant as to see corruption of any form as being beneath us and, therefore, reject it outright,” Mr Osei Wusu noted.
The First Deputy Speaker was addressing the opening ceremony of a stakeholders’ conference to discuss views and perspectives of civil society organisations (CSOs) on the Office of the Special Prosecutor.
It was organised by the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee of Parliament and aimed at soliciting views and recommendations on the Special Prosecutor’s Bill, which is currently before Parliament waiting to be passed into law.
Mr Osei Wusu urged participants to pay particular attention to every clause in the bill, in order not to create room for ambiguity or the need to refer any part of the law to the courts for interpretation.
Minority for bill
For his part, the Minority Leader, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, noted that although the Special Prosecutor’s Bill, in its current form, was not perfect, it was needed by the country.
He said corruption hurt economies and “that is why all of us should be united around this noble cause”.
“The people need it, the economy needs it, the environment needs it and Ghana needs it,” he stressed, and added that “although the bill in its current form may not be perfect, no bill has ever been”.
He, therefore, called for consensus among CSOs and other stakeholders to ensure that the bill succeeded.
He said corruption could best be fought through the creation and strengthening of systems for accountability, transparency and public participation.
Values
Addressing the participants, the Chairman of the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee of Parliament, Mr Ben Abdallah Banda, said Parliament attached great importance to the input from CSOs.
“This explains why Parliament, in its wisdom, deemed it necessary to have a brainstorming session of this nature put together, so that we can all ultimately take ownership of this project, which is so dear to the heart of everyone,” he added.
He said one of the greatest dangers of corruption was the loss of public confidence and trust in public institutions.
“This loss of trust and confidence, if not restored, could ultimately erode the efforts of arousing national consciousness and nation building. However, the government alone cannot win the fight against corruption. We must all be crusaders in this endeavour to fight same,” Mr Banda urged.
He stressed that fighting corruption ultimately depended on values, not only those of the political leadership but also the public service, as an ultimate check.
