The fight against corruption should begin with the individual – Mr Adatekey
Participants at a day’s workshop on anti-corruption have acknowledged the need for the fight against corruption to start with the individual.
“Corruption, no doubt continues to ruin the developmental fortunes of the nation and it is estimated that over three billion dollars is lost to the practice annually in the country, wealth which otherwise could have been invested in schools, roads, hospitals, salaries and wages of workers to improve the living standards of people.”
Mr Mark Adoba Adatekey, the Municipal Education Director of Ahanta West intimated that since charity begins at home, the future generation of this country must be taught at home and schools on the effect of corruption and the need to abstain from this unreasonable act.
He said, “corruption has indeed become a monster and virus in this present generation, and we cannot afford to pass it on to the future generation… we must find an antidote to it now to change things for good”.
Mr Adatekey said children were influenced by what they saw and heard at their tender stages and so catchy phrases such as “corruption is deadly, corruption is bad” when developed and rehearsed over time among them could contribute to the fight against the canker.”
He suggested that a curriculum on corruption should be developed for basic Schools in the country, adding it is better to catch them young.
Mr Richard Quayson, Deputy Commissioner of CHRAJ mentioned that the gross indiscipline, lawlessness and corruption that had engulfed the Ghanaian society was a major recipe for collapse of the moral fibre of the Ghanaian society.
Ghana according to him, could function in the right direction without recourse to foreign Aids and loans if, “We stop killing ourselves and beg other countries to rescue us…Ghana beyond Aid can easily to be achieved”.
Mr Quayson said the country was lagging in development because individuals continued to amass wealth at the expense of the state, “We are dragging our own inheritance on the ground and there would be nothing for the future”.
Mrs Justina Paaga, the Western Regional Manager of the Ghana News Agency stressed the need for the media to pay more attention to issues that affected society rather than the over concentration on political issues and discussions.
She pledged the Agency’s commitment at working to ensure that education on the subject of corruption was carried out extensively to raise more awareness on the developmental effects of single or mass corruption against the nation and the need to curb the practice.
Mrs Paaga promised that her outfit would produce more stories and feature articles on anti-corruption issues and other vices that were a bane to national development
Source: GNA