Joe Ghartey, the Member of Parliament for Essikado-Ketan Constituency and former attorney-general and Minister for Justice has emphatically stated that the next NPP government under the presidency of H.E Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, will scale up the fight against the canker of corruption using digital infrastructure and an enhanced legal regime that will serve as a disincentive for corrupt activities.
According to him, the effective use of legal frameworks and digital tools will significantly reduce opportunities and incentives for corrupt conduct, particularly in public service.
The renowned legislator and legal practitioner made these remarks at a public forum on anti-corruption and governance organized by the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition under the Pledge Against Corruption (PAC) Campaign, on Thursday, November 14, 2024, at the Movenpick Ambassador Hotel, Accra.
The forum, held on the theme, “Anti-Corruption and Governance Commitments of Political Parties”, was organised to bring anti-corruption reforms to the forefront of the political party agenda towards the election 2024.
Hon. Joe Ghartey noted that both the Kufour government and Akufo-Addo government implemented far-reaching policies, passed relevant legislation, and allocated significant resources to the various antigraft agencies to help in the fight against corruption. He mentioned some of these anti-corruption laws including the Right to Information Act, Witness Protection Act, Public Financial Management Act and the Anti Money Laundering Act among others. He also stated that resource allocation to anti-corruption institutions had been dramatically increased in recent years.
“This government has increased the budgetary allocations to the Police (162%), the Audit Service (83%) and CHRAJ (21%) at the end of 2021, compared to 2016”, he remarked.
The former aspiring presidential candidate of the governing NPP also maintained that the next NPP government under Dr. Bawumia will leverage the unprecedented digital transformation he has spearheaded in the past 8 years to increase efficiency in the delivery of public services to all citizens, while reducing opportunities for corruption, due to the reduction of human-to-human interface.
Hon. Joe Ghartey, who represented the NPP at the anti-corruption forum, observed that in fighting corruption, the personal integrity and incorruptibility of the Leader is very crucial. According to him, Dr. Bawumia has amply demonstrated his incorruptibility in public service, and that, in his entire public life spanning over 3 decades, he has never been accused of corruption nor investigated for corruption. Dr. Bawumia can therefore be trusted to fight corruption, he concluded.
