Former Board Chairman of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Professor Stephen Adei in a defeatist expression on Accra-based Joy FM has repeated the overflogged fact that corruption has been culturalized in Ghana.
He was given the chance to exercise his much-talked-about anti-corruption principles when he was made GRA board chair, but he largely failed to plug the corruption holes at the institution he was appointed to give oversight to.
“There is no doubt that the level of corruption in this country is far beyond what will allow us to develop as a country. It is very, very endemic within the public sector that it is almost impossible for genuine business to be carried out without encountering corruption in all phases. So, there is no doubt at all that the corruption is very endemic,” he said on Joy FM’s “Fighting Corruption The Right Way “discussion.
The former GIMPA Rector who was a very consistent voice of criticism against the erstwhile government of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), had lost that voice when the Akufo-Addo government came into office and appointed him to juicy positions.
However, after winning a second term in office, President Akufo-Addo has not yet appointed Prof. Adei to any position, leaving him room to find his voice once more.
According to him, one effective way to fight corruption is to tighten the country’s asset declaration regime and expand it to cover all public sector workers.
“When people are perceived to be corrupt, I think we have come to a point whereby the leadership cannot say that ‘Unless I have evidence’ [the person is innocent]. The level of corruption requires that we look at our laws and people must be made to justify why they are not corrupt. Especially, when there is some evidence, I think Ghanaians led by the leadership, should make it such that you justify your lifestyle with your earnings,” he said.