Corruption disproportionately affects the most vulnerable – Report by GCB

General News of Friday, July 12, 2019

Source: ghananewsagency.org

2019-07-12

The 2019 edition of the Global Corruption Barometer (GCB) survey revealed that corruption disproportionately affects the most vulnerable, with the poorest paying bribes twice as often as the wealthiest .

The report, which is the 10th edition of the GCB – Africa, reveals that most Africans feel that corruption is increasing in their country, but that a majority of them are optimistic that they can, in as citizens, to make a difference in the fight against corruption.

According to the report, more than one in four Africans who had access to public services, such as health care and education, paid a bribe the year before; and that was equivalent to about 130 million people in the region.

The GCB-Africa survey, published by TI in partnership with Afrobarometer, as part of the commemoration of the African Day Against Corruption, reveals that more than half of the citizens surveyed in 35 countries believe that corruption is deteriorating in their countries. respective countries.

Speaking at the launch of the report in Accra on Thursday, Ms. Mary Awelana Addah, program manager at the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII), TI's local, said that The survey revealed that 59% of respondents felt that the Ghana Police Service was the most corrupt institution in the country.

The GCB is the largest and most detailed survey of public opinion on corruption and other forms of corruption in Africa. It was conducted among 47,000 citizens in 35 countries, covering their perceptions of corruption and their direct spending.

The main findings of the survey include: "Corruption is on the rise, many governments are not doing enough, concerns about the integrity of public officials remain high, corruption claims are commonplace and the number of people who have been corrupted varies ".

Ms Addah said that the study revealed that she was followed by judges and magistrates (38%), with civil servants ranking third with 35%.

According to the study, Parliament and members of Parliament are the fourth most corrupt institution in Ghana, with 32%.

Ms. Addah said that it was very difficult to get citizens to report corrupt people to the relevant authorities, despite pbading laws guaranteeing protection and rewarding proactive reporting.

However, 60% of citizens surveyed said the government was fighting corruption effectively, while 30% said it was not doing well.

Ms Addah said in this regard that the GII recommends: the State should intensify its efforts in the fight against corruption by providing the main anti-corruption institutions with the resources they need to carry out their mandate .

She stated that the Special Prosecutor's Office should expedite the investigation and prosecution of the many ongoing corruption cases and raise public awareness of section 3 (3) of the Office Act, as that level of trust of the citizens with regard to the office. gradually decreases.

She urged all public institutions, especially those with supervisory and law enforcement responsibilities, to put in place measures to promote effective service delivery to approved charges in order to resolve persistent problems. corruption in the public sector.

"In accordance with Chapter 20 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption and the obligations arising from the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption, Ghana must take steps to criminalize the United Nations. illicit enrichment and enforcing it to ensure the prevention of the illegal acquisition of wealth not only by public funds, but also by private individuals, "she added.

The Program Manager said that the State should redouble its efforts to sensitize citizens to the 2006 Denunciation Act (Law No. 720) and the recently adopted Law on Witness Protection to encourage the culture of corruption in Ghana.

Ms Addah said that, while congratulating the government and all state institutions for the efforts and progress made in the fight against corruption, they also all encouraged to continue to implement the Plan of Action. national action against corruption.

Therefore, promote efficiency and effectiveness in the public sector and other frameworks, including the implementation of the right to information law to promote transparency and accountability of governance, while building the trust of citizens.