A Major Global Anti-Corruption Issue but Assets Disclosure

As ADM lead story today indicates, eight cabinet ministers would be "forced" out of office in the coming days to mount their campaigns to become president of Ghana on January 9 2009.

The campaigns they have already been mounting have attracted much public interest, if for nothing, but for the amounts of money they are said to be splashing around. How much of that money is kosher and how much is haram is anyone's guess.

These kinds of considerations must have been on the mind of the Executive Director of Justice and Human Rights Institute, Prof. Ken Attafuah, when he said that assets and interest disclosure have become a major global anti-corruption issue in recent times and is a critical component of the national equipment for containing corruption and furthering integrity.

"An effective assets disclosure regime is an integral part of the national development process", he said.

Speaking at a workshop on effective implementation of the assets disclosure regime in Ghana he said the process of undermining and containing corruption and enhancing integrity demands considerable political will. "And by political will I do not simply mean the will of politicians".

Prof. Attafuah said there are leaders through out society, including professional groups, the private sector, trade unions, religious institutions and other civil society groups who can be energized in the cause of corruption control and integrity promotion.

The challenge then, he said, is how to develop a comprehensive assets disclosure regime and ensure its effective implementation.

He said in a country where public office, especially political office, is seen as a quick route to acquiring personal wealth, political will is often lacking among enforcement agencies, with some failing to discharge their duties and others engaging in self-censorship.

He said nepotistic behavior of all kinds - tribalism, cronyism, old school networks - all conspire to frustrate or defeat official arrangements for transparency. Minimalist compliance often promoted by watchdog agencies more adept at watching out for their self-interest or their backsides rather than for the pubic interest.

He said a good disclosure assets system can help prevent conflicts of interest among public officials, increases transparency of the decision-making process and enhance the foundation for accountability of public office holders for their actions.

It can also help provide a baseline and a means for comparison to identify assets that may have been corruptly acquired, and from which a public official may legitimately be asked to account and also a basis for successfully enforcing criminal and other legal anti-corruption provisions.

He said beyond laws, codes and sanctions, the country must build a supporting working environment for asset declaration which includes effective monitoring by dedicated and competent agencies or authorities and adoption of a more comprehensive approach to the training of public officers in integrity. This requires the development of an integrity-centered core curriculum for public office holders at all levels.

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