Ghana drops on 2021 Corruption Perception Index
Government serially accused of failing to fight corruption
Prof. Emmanuel Kwesi Aning, Director of the Faculty of Academic Affairs and Research at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, KAIPTC, has stated that corruption was the glue that binds the country together.
He is concerned about the manner in which Ghana tackles the scourge referring to the approach as full of rhetoric without concrete action.
Reacting to a recent corruption report by the Ghana Statistical Service, GSS, and its partners; Prof. Aning stressed that it was time to tackle the scourge for the negative impact that it has on society.
“Corruption is the glue that binds this country together, without corruption, the edifice called Ghana enterprise will collapse and I think this report quantifies in a very practical commonsensical manner what corruption means and what bribery means. The extent of the problem, the category or categories of individuals and institutions who are involved.
“So, for me, this is one of the few times that a state agent is bold enough to scientifically prove these allegations that people have been making.”
He added that he was happy with the report in terms of the recognition of the problem, how it has been quantified and broken down in terms of negative impact and panoramic nature of the phenomena.
About the Corruption in Ghana survey – GNA report
The maiden national survey, titled: “Corruption in Ghana – people’s experiences and views” also disclosed that more than 17.4 million bribes were paid in the same period.
The survey was conducted by the Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) in collaboration with the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
It collected evidence-based information from 15,000 households across the country involving people who were 18 years and older on the forms of corruption affecting the population of Ghana.
This is to determine the prevalence of the situation and its prevailing typologies, give benchmark indicators that can be used to inform relevant policies to curb administrative corruption in various public institutions in the country.
Apart from the cash payment, which contributed 84.8 per cent of the forms of bribe paid, 13.3 per cent of the bribes paid were food and drinks; 9.7 per cent, exchange for other services; 5 per cent valuables, and 2.2 per cent animals.
The bribes were paid by 33.6 per cent citizens to speed up procedures; 15.8 per cent, as a sign of appreciation; 13.8 per cent, to avoid the payment of fine; 10.8 per cent to avoid problems, and 3.1 per cent, to avoid the cancellation of public utilities.
Ghana drops on Corruption Perception ranking
According to the 2021 edition of the annual corruption ranking chart by Transparency International, Ghana ranked 73rd out of 180 countries on the Corruption Perception Index, CPI, report released on April 4.
“Ghana’s current performance is still below 50 which is the expected average, thus leaves much to be desired,” the report noted.
Out of 49 African countries ranked, Ghana placed 9th with Senegal, each bagging a score of 43.
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Prof. Emmanuel Kwesi Aning