Corruption confab held in B/A

Deputy Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, Eric Opoku, has observed that in the quest to fight corruption in this country emphasis should be placed on prevention.

He said administrative and regulatory mechanisms for the prevention of corrupt practices must focus on regulating official discretion, reducing procedural complexity as well as educating the citizenry on how public systems work.

Mr. Opoku disclosed this at a regional consultative workshop on the development of Ghana’s National Anti-Corruption Action Plan (NACAP) in Sunyani in the Brong Ahafo region.

He continued that vibrant anti-corruption strategies should aim at focusing on the causes and not just the symptoms, adding that such policies must seek to establish a systematic and concerted approach to counter corruption by making effective use of various institutional pillars.

NACAP is a document being coordinated by the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to serve as a national non-partisan working document to be used by both individuals and institutions to fight corruption after it has become a law.

The workshop brought together heads of MDAs, MMDAs, the clergy, representatives of traditional leaders among others.

It was organised to enable participants brainstorm and make inputs for the development of the document and to reflect on their expected roles in the implementation of NACAP.

A deputy Commissioner of CHRAJ and the chairman of NACAP Working Group, Richard Quayson, indentified institutional weaknesses and failure on the part of officials to follow laid down procedures and regulations in both the private and the public sectors of Ghana as a key factor fueling corruption.

He also mentioned poor remuneration, coupled with what he termed as “fear public servants have of ending up as paupers” due to inadequate retirement package as additional factors driving many public officials to loot public funds.

Mr. Quayson further pointed out that other factors accounting for the situation include poor planning and policy direction, and increasing public apathy to stemming corruption.

The deputy CHRAJ commissioner was of the view that corruption has stagnated Ghana’s development as it has often diverted funds allocated for development projects.

He therefore implored all to contribute to the effort of building a systematic concept of corruption prevention and detection.