Judiciary urged to change public perception of corruption

Mr David Rivkin, President, International Bar Association, has called on Judges and Lawyers to be committed to maintaining proper administration of justice, and change public perception of corruption in the judiciary.

He said there was the need to maintain a good attitude towards the service in order to erase the misconceptions about the judiciary and corruption.

Mr Rivkin made the call on Tuesday at a public lecture on the role of the Bar in combating corruption in Accra.

He said when there is corruption in the judiciary it means lawyers and judges as well as people in the Bar are involved and it is their responsibility to combat by putting up appropriate rules to avoid its occurrence.

He noted that usually the perception of corruption, which could be influenced by various factors, is greater than the actual occurrence.

The IBA President said some measures that could be adopted to combat corruption in the judiciary included, creating an internal structure and practices to investigate corruption, creating a system for certifying judicial processes and sensitizing of membership.

He called on the Ghana Bar Association to take advantage of their role in helping to fight corruption in the system.