General News of Tuesday, 5 April 2022
Source: www.ghanaweb.live
2022-04-05'If there is corruption, it’s because Parliament is not stopping it' – Kan Dapaah
play videoAlbert Kan Dapaah, Minister of National Security
Parliament must take lead role in fighting corruption
National Security Minister says Ghana secured
Ghana ranks 73rd out of 180 on 2021 CPI ranking
Minister of National Security has stated that the fight against corruption in public office lies squarely at the doorstep of Parliament.
According to Albert Kan Dapaah, corruption persists because of the failure
Read full articleof Parliament to take requisite steps to combat the canker.
He made these comments when he appeared before Parliament on Monday, April 4, 2022, to answer urgent questions filed by Kwadaso MP, Dr. Kingsley Nyarko on Ghana's security relative to rising insecurity in the wider Wet African region.
The one-time MP stressed that the lawmaking chamber with its many accountability mechanisms was best placed to address corruption in a democratic system.
“Mr. Speaker the most effective accountability institution is Parliament. If there is corruption, it’s because Parliament is not stopping it and it’s a major issue that I believe we cannot do justice to it now,” he said in response to a question by Edward Bawa, MP for Bongo.
The Minister believes that Parliament is best placed to handle issues of corruption because of its role in approving government spending (budget) and auditing same (via Public Accounts Committee).
“The main accountability institution in this instance is Parliament, which approves the government’s budget to implement and has the power to get the Auditor-General to audit the accounts of government and submit it to the Public Accounts Committee,” he added.
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.
