Ghana has lost respect due to corruption – Awuni

The Executive Director of the Centre for Freedom and Accuracy, Andrew Awuni, has said the numerous corruption scandals popping out on daily basis is denting Ghana’s image globally.

In an interview with TV3, Mr Awuni said government appointees are mocked in the diplomatic community due to the series of corruption scandals.

"We have lost respect as a nation in the diplomatic community. When you interact with members of the diplomatic community they have very little respect for government appointees.

“You interact with the business community especially the foreign businesses, and they have very little respect for government officials. In fact some of them have nicknames that they have given to these officials. We are in a very bad situation”.

Mr. Awuni, who was commenting on the latest corruption scandal at MASLOC, in which a Director of Finance is alleged to have stolen over a million cedis through non-existent companies, was worried that corruption had assumed alarming proportions in the country.

He blamed the situation on the lack of political will to punish officials who are indicted in these cases.

“It appears like these days when you are appointed to any public institution, it’s like you have been given your own farm, so go and make the best out of it.

"It happened at the National Service Secretariat; you would realize that it’s the same technique that has been used by MASLOC.

“Get some ghost companies, list them down, pass monies to them and at the end of it you get the total amount and take it to wherever you want. It’s the same thing with the NSS.

“It [keeps happening] because very little is done to such persons. We don’t see the punishment and the jailing of these offenders. There is so much impunity; we all know what happens at the Attorney-General’s Department; we all know what happened there in the early part of Professor Mills’ administration.

“In some cases, such persons are even getting promoted all the time and it is really getting bad,” Mr. Awuni lamented.

Mr. Awuni added: “Corruption has always been here with us. The problem now is that it is assuming alarming proportions. That is because people now carry it out with impunity.

“They are seeing it up there so they copy it. There are things the CFA (Center for Freedom and Accuracy) cannot put out today because if we put those things out about issues of corruption it will destabilize the nation”.