Ghana's Anti-Corruption Efforts Undermined by Public Apathy - Kissi Agyebeng

Accra, Ghana - 28 Feb, 2025 - Ghana's commitment to fighting corruption is being hindered by a lack of public support, according to the country's Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng.

Speaking at the Constitution Day Public Lecture, Agyebeng expressed concerns that while many Ghanaians acknowledge the need to combat corruption, some factions actively undermine the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) and its mandate.

Agyebeng noted that attempts to discredit the OSP and its officers have been met with resistance and pushback, often from individuals or groups being investigated or prosecuted.

According to him, this has created a "curious cycle" where the public protests both when the OSP takes action and when it is perceived as inactive.

The Special Prosecutor emphasized that this contradiction undermines Ghana's efforts to combat corruption.

“There have been attempts to discredit the principles of the office and its officers, unjustly attended by formidable resistance and push back. Often the attacks on the office and its principals are done by persons who are at the short end of investigation or prosecution, and the associates of such persons.

“The effect of the existential challenge confronting the OSP is that though the nation collectively acknowledges that we must fight corruption, yet there is also a section that the flagship agency designed, even if imperfectly, to fight corruption, is not needed and should be disbanded while others actively undermine it and its principal officers,” he stated.

“This has translated into a rather curious cycle; there is an outcry when the OSP acts and an outcry when it is seen as not acting. It is as if we do not know what we want. The situation in Ghana now appears to be like ‘we must fight corruption but we must not fight corruption, that is our state now,” he added.

Source: Lead News Online