NCCE engages Birifoh community on Social Accountability

The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has engaged the people of Birifoh Community in the Lawra Municipality of the Upper West Region on the importance of social accountability in local governance.

The engagement forum, which brought together a total of 147 people comprising 49 females and 98 males was on the theme: “Citizens for Transparency and Accountability”.

Addressing the people, Mr Mornah Jesurun Ninge, the Lawra Municipal Director of NCCE explained that social accountability was an approach to governance where ordinary people were empowered with information that enabled them to constructively engage with their local authorities to demand transparency and accountability in the utilization of public resources.

He indicated that resources allocated by the central government to the Metropolitan Municipal or District Assemblies, belonged to the people, hence, the need for citizens to take interest in demanding accountability in the utilization of such resources.

Mr John Bedi, the Lawra Municipal Director of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) urged the people to make use of the National Anti-Corruption Action Plan (NACAP), which according to him was designed to fight corruption.

He said NACAP if used effectively, would help reduce corruption to the bearers’ minimum and that would translate into improved service delivery.

Mr Martin Domotiere Bomba-ire, the Lawra Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) appealed to the people to take interest in participating in the Assembly’s activities to empower them with information that would enable them demand for accountability.

The MCE announced that currently, there was a Self-Help Electricity project ongoing in the community and urged the people to assist the contractor in whatever way possible for him to complete the project.

The NCCE’s project dubbed “Promoting Social Accountability through Citizen’s Participation in Local Governance”, is being sponsored by the European Union.