Global Policy Forum

By Orando Bigboy Yanquoi

A Conference of ECOWAS Ministers of Justice for the first time in the sub-region has ended in Accra. The conference whose theme was "collaborating Against Corruption Towards Effective Strategies and Mechanism" was held at the Accra International Conference Center from May 21 to 22. It brought together all 16 Ministers of Justice from the ECOWAS sub-region and other experts to define a common framework for dealing with corruption and improving the quality of governance in the Community. The conference was said to be laying a cornerstone foundation that is expected to be used as a major inputs into framing the African positions at the Second Global Forum on combating corruption and safeguarding integrity, which takes off on 28th to 31st May this year.

It is also anticipated that the concern, strategies and mechanisms that have been agreed upon in the meeting for combating corruption in the community, will be communicated to ECOWAS Heads of States Summit, to accelerate deliberation on the Community Protocol to eliminate corruption.

Ghana's Attorney general and Minister of Justice, Nana-Akufo Addo told newsmen that the conference was the first of its kind and was embraced and fully attended by World Bank, UNDP, Ghana Anti Corruption Coalition, Ghana Integrity Initiative, Transparency International and the German Development Agency.

In Ghana there is no doubt that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government may succeed in mitigating corruption as it has launched an anti-corruption campaign famously known as "Zero Tolerance of Corruption," which has kicked out one of its Ministers, Malam yusuf Ali Isa. Former Minister, Malam Isa, is alleged to have stolen $ 46 thousand from government through the Ministry of Youth and Sports where he served as Minister in two months just after his appointment. The Government has also arrested a former Deputy Minister of Finance, Mr. Victor Salomey of the ousted National Democratic Congress (NDC) for transferring two solid accounts to a non-existing companies abroad. The two are currently under going court trial.

But analysts say only lip services are paid to this campaign in other countries of the sub-region where top government officials are so corrupt that they can only afford to work with corrupt people. International institutions despite their participation in the just ended conference, are apprehensive and keenly awaiting to see the out come of the ECOWAS Heads of State Summit that is expected to rectify the conference blue print.

Observers are also saying that the Heads of State may not append their signatures on a document for the creation of a court that would try them one after another since all are one way or the other involved in corruption.