Ghana can win the war against corruption – CHRAJ

Richard A. Quayson, Deputy Commissioner of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), says the fight against corruption in Ghana might be won by working together.

He explained that over time people had become more aware of the negative effects of corruption and the tools for reporting such offences, including whistleblowing.

“Most institutions have or are in the process of establishing safe corruption reporting mechanisms at the workplace,” Quayson said during a stakeholders’ engagement session organised by the Ghana News Agency.

He spoke on the topic: “Is the fight against corruption a mirage or reality 30 years under the Fourth Republic?”

Quayson said many institutions that generated revenue had gone digital, eliminating the potential for malfeasance.

The Public Service Integrity Programme’s (PSIP) implementation of the conflict of interest rule, the gift policy, and the asset declaration system outlined in the code of conduct for public servants, according to Mr. Quayson, has increased the dispute.

The Judicial Service’s Electronic Case Distribution System has been made available to all superior and circuit courts, according to the CHRAJ Deputy Commissioner to prevent practises that favour judicial corruption.

He said that the adoption of sexual harassment policies by more institutions, the creation of integrity awards, the enforcement of pertinent laws, and the rise of investigative journalism and media exposés all represented progress.

He said because corruption undermined national advances, he appealed to all Ghanaians to join the fight to eradicate it for the sake of the country’s next generation.

Quayson said the country’s socioeconomic development was being severely harmed by the money being lost to corruption.

The GNA Tema Regional Manager, Mr. Francis Ameyibor, pleaded with both public and commercial institutions to work effectively with the media in their initiatives and programmes to combat corruption.

Ameyibor urged stakeholders to work together to fight corruption, adding the fight against corruption would be ineffective without the media raising awareness of the dangers of corruption and the responsibility of every citizen to combat it.