Former President John Kufour has charged President John Mahama’s administration to move beyond merely denouncing corruption and act decisively on it.
“Government has to move beyond merely denouncing corruption to acting decisively on it. This preaching alone doesn’t do it,” he observed.
[contextly_sidebar id=”07oHUayyaUoUPxPydfLCbltKBpa9SRNY”]The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is insisting that it is working to reduce to the barest minimum and if possible, eliminate acts of corruption in the society.
The latest Afrobarometer report on corruption stated that the increasing perception among Ghanaians over the rate of corruption gives credence to the fact that corruption is on the rise.
However, President John Mahama during a meeting with the Council of State members on Monday said it is paradoxical that “when a government has a commitment to fight corruption, it is the one that is accused of corruption.”
“…when you are investigating corruption, the first thing to do is to expose it but when you expose it, it leads to a heightened perception of corruption so suddenly, everybody is talking about cases that are being investigated by government and it creates a certain perception that this government that is rather doing something to fight corruption is the one that is corrupt,” he observed.
But ex-President Kufuor is of the firm believe that if the government deals effectively with corruption by cracking the whip on corrupt officials, the matter will be reduce.
He noted that Ghana has all the important laws on corruption but what it lacked was the enforcement of these legislations.
“The laws are in place; it’s just a matter of enforcement. The laws are there for offenders; if somebody offends, you let the law operate,” he advised.
Ghana is currently dealing with a series of major corruption scandals that have rocked the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) government in the last few years. Notable among them is the payment of GHC 51 million to businessman, Alfred Woyome, the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) project, Ghana Youth Employment and Entrepreneurial Development Agency (GYEEDA) scandal and the rot at the National Service Secretariat (NSS).
In an interview with Citi News, the former President said preaching against corruption alone won’t solve the problem, stressing that “the laws are there…”
He counseled public officials and government appointees people to always be mindful of the fact that “they are accountable; that they govern well, people will appreciate and if they don’t people will know and that is not good.”
By: Efua Idan Osam/citifmonline.com/Ghana
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