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 At GBA conference: Fight against corruption on course …President assures

The President, Nana Addo Dank­wa Akufo-Addo, has affirmed his commitment not to set aside due process in the fight against cor­ruption in the country and said, his administration was committed towards enforcing the law on corruption.

• President Akufo-Addo (middle) interacting
with Justice Jones Dotse at the conference
• President Akufo-Addo (middle) interacting with Justice Jones Dotse at the conference

He explained that, every single allegation of corruption against any member of his government had been investigated by indepen­dent bodies such as Commission for Human Rights and Admin­istrative Justice (CHRAJ), the Criminal Investigation Commis­sion (CID) and in some cases by parliament.

“It is not my job to clear or convict any person accused of wrongdoing or of engaging in acts of corruption. That is the job of the courts and law enforcement agencies,” he said.

President Akufo-Addo said this in a speech at the opening of this year’s conference of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) in Cape Coast.

The five-day conference is on the theme: “Ensuring high stan­dards and integrity in public life; the role of the legal profession”.

President Akufo-Addo said he would place his government’s record on corruption for public scrutiny and said the current ad­ministration under his leadership, had taken the boldest initiative so far in the country to reform and strengthen the capacity of institu­tions to tackle corruption in the country’s history.

He further stated that: “My job is to act on allegation of corruption by referring issue or issues to the proper investigative agencies for the relevant enquiry or action including if necessary the suspension of the affected official pending the conclusion of investigations”.

That, he said, was exactly what had been done since January 2017 and proceeded to mention a number of allegations against members of his administration on a case by case basis.

President Akufo-Addo fur­ther stated that, none of the accountability institutions of state including the Office of Special Prosecutor had indicated of any pressure from the executive over their investigations.

“There are some who will not accept my method of proceeding and characterised me as a clearing agent because for them the mere allegation is enough to merit the condemnation of a public offi­cial,” he indicated.

He said, if not controlled, cor­ruption can dampen the economic aspirations of any nation, saying, “Globally, the World Economic Forum has estimated the cost of corruption around the world at some US$2.6 trillion a year.”

The Chief Justice, Justice Ger­trude Araba Esaaba Torkornoo, in her address, urged lawyers in the country to ensure that their work produces the much sought-after values of justice, fairness and the rule of law that started the jour­ney of law making.

She explained that, it was these values that would allow for the strength and stability that pro­voked the efforts of law making, saying, “Our call is to simply serve the public, our call is to simply serve the communities”.

“We are required to be the guid­ance of rights, interpreters of the concept of justice and advocates for justice for both the strong and weak without fear or favour or affection” she stated.

Justice Torkornoo urged lawyers to be diligent in their work by ensuring that every citation they worked with their names and reference was correct.

She stated that, diligence, integrity, independence of mind and research would also weed out the horror of the public expecting their counsel to be paid fees and to be given more money osten­sibly to bride court officials and judicial officers.

She urged lawyers to see them­selves as necessary partners in safeguarding the integrity of the nation’s justice system.

 FROM DAVID O. YARBOI-TETTEH, CAPE COAST

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