In order to strengthen the battle against corruption, the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, has proposed for a change to article 195 of the Constitution, which would ensure the independence of the Auditor-General (A-G).
According to him, the A-position G's is open to the public and serves as a weapon for Parliament to combat corruption, but article 195 gives the President the authority to designate the A-G, depriving the position of its independence.
According to Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for Suame, "fortunately for us, article 195 is not an entrenched law; thus, if we want, we can bring it before Parliament and modify the Constitution to accomplish this amendment to actually protect the independence of the A-G."
financial independence
Last Wednesday, Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu stated on the House Floor of Parliament that "Parliament must seek the A-financial G's autonomy in order to insulate the office and get its occupant to be really independent."
He said that in response to a speech made by Ho West National Democratic Congress (NDC) MP Emmanuel Bedzrah in honour of "African Anti-Corruption Day."
On July 11, a day designated for reflection on the effects of corruption on African development, analysis of national policies for dealing with the problem, and mobilisation of public support for the fight against corruption was held.
Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu called for deliberate attempts to nip the canker in the bud and said corruption was a misuse of the public trust and the theft of public revenues for private benefit.
He believes that lawmakers should be worried about corruption since it mostly affects the poor and middle class, diverting resources from the government that could have been used for the common good.
The Suame MP referenced a research by the Centre for Democratic Development Ghana (CDD) that showed that corruption cost the country an equivalent of $3 billion annually.
"The World Bank defended this claim by claiming that close to 20% of public allocations—or roughly $3 billion annually—were lost to corruption.
Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu stated, "This should push us as a House to use the instruments of our committee to be conducting much serious inquisitorial work than we have been doing.
The Majority Leader outlined the employment of numerous committees to exert oversight authority over the executive, including the many ministries, divisions, and agencies, as the primary duty of Parliament in the fight against corruption (MDAs).
In light of this, Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu raised concern about Parliament's failure to continue citing the Auditor-report General's as essential to the fight against corruption, stating that the "A-G just complements what Parliament is supposed to do."
Since we are the guardians of the public purse and distribute funds for public goods and services while the administration implements the programmes and projects with those funds, he said, "It is a gap in our performance as a Parliament."
The Suame MP stated that it is the duty of parliamentary committees to pursue the various MDAs in the use of these resources after the resources are provided and the appropriation bill is approved by this House and signed by the President.
inadequate independence
Dr. James Klutse Avedzi, the deputy minority leader, had earlier said that the 1992 Constitution had made it clear that the Office of the Attorney General would be in charge of the audit of public finances.
In order to strengthen the battle against corruption, he encouraged the House to change the Constitution to ensure that the A-G was chosen through a procedure that guaranteed their independence.
In his presentation, Mr. Bedzrah stated that certain Ghanaians continued to benefit from the practise despite the country's unshakable commitment to eradicating corruption and promoting openness and accountability in government.
As a result, he suggested that section 124 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) be changed so that corruption would no longer be considered a second-degree crime.
He also suggested that anyone found guilty in the A-G report be punished in accordance with the law.
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