Ghanaians told to seek Legal Aid’s help to report acts of corruption

Members of the public who need legal assistance to enable them report acts of corruption have been encouraged to contact Legal Aid for such services free of charge.

This is necessary to ensure that people do not refuse to report acts of corruption for fear of getting themselves involved in any legal tussles.

Mr Sebastian Ziem, Chief Investigative Officer at the Upper West Regional Office of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), allayed the fears of the public in corruption reporting during an anti-corruption sensitization campaign in Wa Municipal.

The anti-corruption sensitization campaign is a collaborative work of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) and CHRAJ with support from the European Union (EU).

Mr Ziem told the participants that the essence of the Whistle Blowers Act 2006, Act (720) was to help check and prevent corruption while improving on service delivery.

The Chief Investigative Officer of CHRAJ also directed the public to report acts of corruption to state mandated institutions such as the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO), CHRAJ and the Ghana Police Service.

He said vote buying and favoritism were among the elements of corruption in which both the giver and the receiver were guilty of the offence and, therefore, liable for prosecution.

On transparency and accountability, Mr Ziem said citizens needed to be transparent and accountable at all levels of society while also demanding accountability from duty bearers.

Madam Jennifer Anbana, a Principal Civic Education Officer of NCCE, said so far the Commission has interacted with 30 identifiable groups within the Municipality on the effects of corruption on the individual, the family, society and the nation at large.

Source: GNA