The Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Ghana, His Excellency Daniel Krull, has praised Ghana’s anti-corruption organizations for its cutting-edge and astute institutions in the fight against corruption.
He made these remarks at a two-day round table discussion on sustainable peacebuilding in Ghana from November 26th to 27th, 2023.
The event was hosted by the Merian Institute for Advanced Studies in Africa (MIASA) in partnership with the Legon Centre for International Affairs and Diplomacy (LECIAD).
His Excellency, Daniel Krull, despite praising the country’s anti-corruption institutions, also pointed out a disconnection between the institutional framework and the reality of the situation.
He made the remark in relation to how citizens and the government view corruption as a phenomenon.
“The Ghanaian institutions fighting corruption are state-of-the-art, high-level, and absolutely amazing. However, there seems to be a discrepancy between the surface, the legal and institutional framework, and reality.”
Also present at the conference, Director of the Counterterrorism Fusion Centre at the Ministry of National Security, Dr. Colonel Timothy Ba-Taa-Banah, called for more public scrutiny of the ‘see something, say something’ security campaign by the government as the policy seems to have weakened since its inception a year ago.
“We are very excited about the fact that ‘see something, say something’ in just about a year has caught up with us and we are seeing the weaknesses of the campaign. It is only when we all appreciate these weaknesses that we can make it a better tool for us tomorrow.”
“We want it to be ingrained in our consciousness, in the consciousness of our kids, that they must be conscious of their immediate environments relative to security, so we are excited that we are bringing out the weaknesses and it more because, through that, we will fine-tune it and make it stronger and better for ourselves.”
In the 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index by Transparency International, Ghana achieved a score of 43 out of 100. Over the years, Ghana’s Corruption Index has fluctuated, averaging 39.44 points from 1998 to 2022. The highest score was 48.00 points in 2014, while the lowest was 33.00 points in 1999.
These variations reflect changing perceptions of corruption within the country, highlighting the ongoing challenges and improvements in addressing corruption issues over the years.
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Story by: Alexander Kuuku Osei-Baidoo | univers.ug.edu.gh
