Corruption is Killing Ghana -Minister

Mr. Kwesi Blay, the Deputy Western Regional Minister has called on Ghanaians to come together to fight against corruption and also stop people from using state funds to enrich themselves.

He said the crusade had become necessary because Ghana could not always go round with a cup in her hand begging for money to develop the country. "Corruption has to be confronted from all corners because it exists in all facets of the Ghanaian society including government and the private sector", he said.

Mr Blay noted that because of corruption, acceptable norms were not tolerated in most institutions in the country and therefore warned that if the situation was not checked, it would be very difficult for the poor to compete in the society as it would make justice very expensive.

The Minister told the over sixty participants drawn from all sectors of the economy at the workshop that the scourge of corruption was a challenge facing citizens in less developed countries especially, like Ghana.

He however reiterated the commitment of Government to deal with the menace. This commitment, he said, necessitated the enactment of the Public Procurement Law, Financial Administration and Anti-money Laundering Laws to serve as a check on corrupt practices.

He said while these laws were in place, the Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), Serious Fraud Office (SFO), the Police and the Office of Accountability were all engaged vigorously in pursuing their mandate to ensure that public office holders did not become corrupt.

Most Rev. Dr. John Martin Darko, Catholic Bishop of the Sekondi-Takoradi Diocese who delivered the keynote address said Ghana, as a nation, could not afford to look the other away when corruption was blatantly being displayed in the open with the excuse that everybody was doing it.

He noted that all Ghanaians had the responsibility of putting both the government and the civil society on their toes to prevent them from indulging in corruption. He called for severe punishment for those who engaged in corruption.

He however noted that punishment of people engaged in corrupt practices as well as education on the menace were among the right ways of dealing with corruption which has dealt a blow to the nation's economy.

"The human factor is what we must tackle now, if we are to save our country from collapse after the Government's efforts to build up our economy and create confidence in our new currency", he said.

According to the Reverend Minister, several institutions in the country were engaged in this practice. He cited the health sector as one area where corrupt practices were going on. While hitting the health workers for this behavior which he described as detrimental to the economy, he unleashed another attack on the Police service, which he noted was fighting to maintain its image.

He observed that the Clergy and civil service were also in one way or the other engaged in corrupt practices in the country. The Programme and Research Officer of Ghana Integrity Initiative, (GII) Mr. Gilbert Sam, appealed to Ghanaians to consider transparency and accountability as the hallmark of good governance to help in the minimization of corruption.

This, he noted, would be possible if Ghanaians ensured that resources belonging to the people were put to proper use. "There is a need for collaboration, coalition building, multi sectored approaches and combined force", he said.

The Western Regional Director of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), Mr. Kweku Baah Owusu earlier in his welcome address revealed that the price of corruption could be very painful no matter when and how it is paid.