Participants Displaying their Placards
The Electoral Commission (EC) must enforce laws on accountability and financial auditing of political parties to support the government’s efforts at clamping down corruption, Akoto Ampaw, private legal practitioner, has said.
He noted that corruption and impunity were destroying the country stressing that “unless and until political parties are held accountable for their funding all fuss we are making about fighting against corruption will go nowhere.”
He said this in Accra on Saturday during the silent march against corruption as part of a 21-day schedule of activities to commemorate this year’s International Anti-Corruption Day.
The participants of the march were anti-corruption advocates and institutions who held placards with inscriptions “corruption must go”, “corruption is putting our progress in chains” among others.
To end the canker, Mr Ampaw indicated that there was the need to establish social movement against anti-corruption targeted toward the EC to ensure that laws on the funding and financial auditing of political parties were being implemented and enforced.
Mr Ampaw said corruption in the country had permeated through the systems because political parties were not united in fighting corruption, adding that the appointment of “political cronies” had created an avenue for them to use illegal means to loot the state.
This, he said, could only be addressed if allegations of past and current government officials accused of embezzling state funds were prosecuted and made to pay “the price.”
“If we intend to fight against corruption, our concern should not only be with respect to the allegations that current and past government officials who have engaged in corruption but rather we must ensure that those involved in the act are made to pay the price for it,” he added.
The Executive Director of the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Professor Henry Kwasi Prempeh, on his part said corruption victimised the poor, the powerless and the needy in society adding that “those who have power, influence and wealth often manage to navigate their way through the system.”
“Corruption is a tax inflicted on a large section of the country’s population especially the poor as resources meant for funding of essential infrastructure and services because the monies have gone elsewhere,” he stated.
Prof Prempeh noted that huge amount of monies were being used to pay interest on debts as a result of corruption saying “the country is moving gradually from an aid dependent country to a debt dependent country.”
“We are struggling as a country and the more we lose money to corruption the more indebted we become that means that the future of our children and grand children is being mortgaged because of corruption,” he emphasised.
He called on the citizens to actively play their roles in fighting the canker by reporting acts of corruption and standing against corruption.
Sheikh Aremeyaw Shaibu, spokesperson of the National Chief Imam, in his submission described corruption as a murderous act and injustice to the nation’s development.
He said corruption was a moral failure and a dent on human conscience saying “the more we allow it to thrive and continue the more society suffers and we have no reason to complain.”
He advised that citizens refrain from corrupt acts for the development of the nation.
BY ALLIA NOSHIE
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