Conflict of interests undermines accountability - Kufuor

Kpeve (V/R), Oct 31, GNA - President John Agyekum Kufuor on Monday advised Assembly-members against seeking favours from District Chief Executives because they would be compromising their authority to demand accountability from such public office holders.

"Any member that will use his or her position to gain contracts or undue favours from his or her Assembly will be committing a serious conflict of interest and should be liable to sanction", President Kufuor warned in his inaugural address to the South-Dayi District Assembly at Kpeve on Monday.

He said Assemblies members should serve with dedication and commitment who would demand accountability of themselves and management in order to ensure the credibility of the Assemblies.

President Kufuor reminded District Chief Executives of their positions as first servants of the people having been nominated by him and as stewards of the Assemblies, which approved of their nomination. In such dual capacities, they should comport themselves and administer their districts in ways that would convince the people that they were nominated with the public interest as the paramount consideration.

As stewards of the Assemblies, they should be diligent, accountable and responsive to their individual Assemblies and the populace and should never forget that they are subject to a dual sanction from the President or the assemblies, or both, the President cautioned. President Kufuor called on the Assemblies to use their lower structures to raise public awareness on the need to pay their tolls and fees to enable their Assemblies to deliver quality services that they desired.

"It is only through effective revenue mobilization that you can meet the expectations of your electoral areas and also pay yourselves meaningful allowances,=94 he said.

President Kufuor cautioned the assemblies against over-reliance on central government sources of funding to prosecute their development plans and programmes.

He called for co-operation between the Assemblies and the DCEs as their respective roles are integral to each other.

"In the end it is the success of individual districts that will combine to make our nation successful", President Kufuor said. Mrs Woyram Boakye-Danquah, DCE for South-Dayi, called on the Assembly-members to work hard to improve and develop the principles of inter-dependence and collaboration upon which the Assembly concept was established.