Akufo Addo’s Corruption Worse Than Mahama-Transparency International

The latest global Corruption Perception Index has reinforced worries that the Akufo Addo administration worse in terms of corruption compared to the previous administration of the John Dramani Mahama-led National Democratic Congress (NDC)
The latest 2019 ranking released by the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII)-the local chapter of the global Transparency International shows that Ghana scoring 41 points out of 100 points.
 
Indeed, this score has remained this abysmal since the New Patriotic Party (NPP) assumed power in 2017, despite the anti-corruption rhetoric of the government and the fact that it claimed it had empowered the Special Prosecutor Martin Amidu to independently fight official corruption.
 
From 2013, the NDC administration which was mostly criticised for corruption had cumulatively scored higher than the current administration. Indeed, from the recently released scores, the worse corruption score of the erstwhile Mahama administration was two points better than the best performance of the Akufo Addo administration within the same three-year period.  
 
The best scores of the erstwhile Mahama administration was 46 points (below the average mark of 50 points) while the current administration’s best score is 41 points.
 
In Sub-Saharan Africa, Ghana managed to beat about 30 out of the more than 50 countries sampled, including habitual corruption hubs like Nigeria, Somalia, Sudan, Niger, etc.
 
Ghana was found to be on the same corruption level as Benin Republic.
 
According to GII in its release today on the corruption index, “Political parties must demonstrate a high sense of integrity and transparency in all their campaign finances to avoid the snares of political entrepreneurs.”
 
In what may mean a verdict of failure in the corruption fight for the Akufo Addo administration, GII adds, “Government must take a critical look at elements that promote public sector corruption including patronage, clientelism, nepotism and suspiciously close ties between politics and business.”
Since the inception of the current administrations, countless cases of alleged corrupt acts have flooded the media, including major ones like the US$ 390 million Power Distribution Services (PDS) deal, the US$ 1 million Kroll Associates deal of the Senior Minister Yaw Osafo Marfo, the insider trading of the Public Procurement Authority Boss, etc.
There have also been countless reports of  shady contracts awarded under suspicious circumstances by agents of the current NPP administration, including the over US$ 70 million Kelni GvG telecom monitoring contract awarded by the Minister of Communication, Ursula Owusu, among others.
Critics think the latest corruption perception index will play out seriously during this year’s presidential elections, as the NDC may use the data to argue its point against the Akufo Addo administration.
 
The CPI for 2019 released worldwide today Thursday, January 23, 2019, scores and ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption.
 
The CPI 2019 draws on 13 different surveys and expert assessments to measure public sector corruption giving each country a score from (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).
CPI 2019 focuses on political integrity and highlights the relationship between politics, money and corruption.