Tamale, Nov 14, GNA – The Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII), the local chapter of the Transparency International, an anti-corruption organisation, has held a consultative stakeholders forum on judicial processes and corruption reporting in the country.
The day’s forum, which was held in Tamale, on the theme: “Promoting Transparency, Integrity, Accountability and public confidence in judicial processes,” was to seek stakeholders’ inputs in the area of judicial processes and corruption reporting in the Northern Region.
The forum, held in collaboration with the Judicial Service of Ghana, had funding support from the German Development Cooperation (GIZ Ghana).
It sought to educate participants on judicial processes and mechanisms involved in reporting corruption-related acts.
Mrs Mary Awelana Addah, Programmes Manager of GII, said the event was to allow stakeholders to address people’s impression of the judicial processes being fraught with corruption and to educate participants on how to report instances of corruption.
She cited some instances of investigated corruption in the judiciary, saying “because of some past proceedings of alleged judicial corruption, most citizens have lost confidence in the judicial processes and this engagement seeks to change the narrative.”
His Lordship Justice Mac Kogyapwah, Northern Regional Supervising High Court Judge, took participants through court processes and reporting mechanisms including the Public Relations and Complaint Unit (PRCU).
He urged citizens to develop an interest in the law courts’ proceedings, and not rely on mere allegations of perceived corruption in the judicial processes.
He emphasised that “If you don’t understand the judicial processes, ask the Registrar for detailed explanations to help you appreciate how the process works. The fact that you don’t understand does not make the court corrupt or wrong.”
Mrs Petra deGraft Johnson, Coordinator of the Advocacy and Legal Advice Centre at GII, encouraged the citizenry to seek legal advice on matters about perceived corruption, adding that her outfit was one of such institutions that rendered such services.
The GII held a similar forum in the Savannah Region to educate stakeholders on judicial processes and corruption reporting.
GNA