The Akufo-Addo administration has come under intense criticism from former President John Mahama, who claims that it has allowed Ghana to slide into an unpredictably corrupt nation.
During a year-end meeting with current lawmakers and NDC parliamentary candidates for 2024, Mr. Mahama stated that corruption is one of the primary issues preventing the nation’s progress.
He claims that despite increased attempts, the canker has not been stopped.
“Corruption has recently erupted and is raging throughout the nation. Ghanaians have developed a condition known as “scandal fatigue,” as everyone grows weary of hearing about the NPP’s corruption when there is a controversy every week.
“Just when you believe you have seen the worst, they go to unimaginably high new heights. The most recent SML agreement is one of them. He remarked, “One wonders how they could have sat and plotted to defraud the country with such a contract.
However, the President made a forceful defense of his performance in combating corruption on the same day that Mr. Mahama delivered his critique of the Akufo-Addo administration.
At the launch of the evaluation of Ghana’s maiden national anti-corruption action plan, he rejected the tag of being a clearing agent, a tag that simply means he supports and keeps corrupt officials in his administration.
According to President Akufo-Addo, “Every single alleged act of corruption levelled against any of my appointees has been investigated by individual bodies such as the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and some cases by Parliament.”
“It is not my job to clear or convict a person accused of wrongdoing or of engaging in any acts of wrongdoing. Despite the efforts of some to tag me as a clearing agent.
“That is the job of the courts and the law enforcement agencies. My job is to act on allegations of corruption by referring the issues to the proper investigative agency for the relevant inquiry and action including if necessary the suspension of the affected official pending the conclusion of the investigation, that is exactly what has been done since I assumed the mantle of leadership, he said.
He noted that since he assumed office as President, “no evidence or allegation has been forthcoming that the Executive i.e. myself as President has made any attempt to influence the outcome of any of these investigations. The latest episode involving the former Sanitation Minister, Cecilia Abena Dapaah is evident for all to see.”
He also said the country has made remarkable progress in the fight against corruption under his administration.
