By Joseph Agrace Wiyorbie
Wa (UW/R), Nov. 19, GNA -The Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC) has equipped five districts with knowledge on the role of the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) in fighting corruption in the Upper West Region.
They included the Sissala East, Sissala West, Lambussie, Nadowli-Kaleo and Nandom Municipalities.
The GACC held the engagements on the theme: “Strengthening the Rule of Law and the Fight Against Corruption in Ghana,” which formed part of a nationwide campaign to raise public awareness and understanding of the Office of the Special Prosecutor law.
The forum also formed part of GACC’s efforts to strengthen the rule of law and enhance citizens’ effective participation in combating corruption at the local level.
It brought together representatives from the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), civil society, traditional and religious leaders, youth groups and persons with disabilities.
The participants were taken through the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959) and its mandate to promote transparency, integrity, and accountability in governance
Mr Samuel Harrison-Cudjoe, the Programme Officer of GACC, during the Workshops said the project formed part of the Coalition’s two-year initiative to educate the public to play a critical role in the fight against corruption.
He said corruption was destroying Ghana’s democracy and development and called for collective efforts to combat it as the fight against corruption in Ghana could not be left to a single institution.
Mr Harrison-Cudjoe highlighted various forms of corruption such as bribery, nepotism, embezzlement, favouritism, extortion, fraud, abuse of power, conflict of interest, and payment of facilitation fees.
He indicated that the government had introduced a series of legal institutional reforms, such as Whistleblower Act, the Witness Protection Act, 2018 and the OSP, to address corruption.
However, despite these efforts, effectiveness remained constrained by low public awareness, mistrust of institutions, and weak engagement at the district level, which were hindering the fight against corruption, he said.
Harrison-Cudjoe said the project was aimed to enhance the effectiveness of key government agencies to help in the fight against corruption, while encouraging the active participation of civil society in accountability and policy making.
“Do not think that corruption is associated with only politicians, it permeates every aspect of society and changing our attitudes is the only way to combat corruption.
When we train corrupt children, we will have corrupt people. Corruption starts from homes to tertiary institutions, and so in fighting corruption, parents need to raise their children well,” Mr Harrison-Cudjoe stressed.
The participants expressed gratitude to GACC and its partners for the initiative, noting that the engagement had enlightened them on OSP laws.
They said it had also built their capacities to report suspected corrupt practices to the appropriate authorities without fear and intimidation.
GNA
Edited by Caesar Abagali / Christabel Addo