The Fight Against Corruption

Saturday July 11, 2009
By Kwame Gyasi

“Ghana was the first place in sub-Saharan Africa where Europeans arrived to trade - first in gold, later in slaves.

It was also the first black African nation in the region to achieve independence from a colonial power, in this instance Britain.

Despite being rich in mineral resources and endowed with good education system and efficient civil service, Ghana fell victim to corruption and mismanagement soon after independence in 1957…

There are plenty of signs of money in Accra.

New hotels are going up, while half-built houses dominate the outer suburbs of the capital, often funded by money sent home from relatives overseas.

But for many on the lower rungs of society in a poor country, opportunities are limited, work is insecure and rising fuel prices have hit hard”.

__BBC Report

On May 15, 2009 the Ghana Integrity Initiative
(GII), the local chapter of Transparency International (TI), the leading international anti-corruption NGO launched the Advocacy and Legal Advice Centre (ALAC).

The launching was performed by Mr. Ebo Barton-Odro, the deputy Attorney-General and the Minister of Justice.

ALAC is a bold attempt by GII to provide avenue for persons confronted with issues of corruption to turn to in order to seek advice and possibly legal aid.

ALAC then is one essential step in the fight against corruption. The column today is devoted to introducing ALAC.

ALAC has been established in Ghana by GII to provide a platform for citizens, corporate bodies and legal persons resident in Ghana to participate more effectively in the fight against corruption.

In July 2005, a research termed “Voice of the People” survey (Southern Ghana) by GII revealed that corruption is rife in Ghana.

In the survey it was identified that over 87% of respondents were unconcerned about reporting incidence of corruption because they were not sure something will be done about it.

ALAC has been established to fill the gap that exists between witnesses and victims of corruption and the institutions that have been set up by the state to address such matters.

ALAC therefore provides the platform to link the complaint to the appropriate forum for the necessary redress.

ALACs were first pioneered by TI in Eastern Europe in 2003. By the end of 2008, 27 ALACs have been established across the world.

ALACs strongly believe that people are usually apathetic in the face of corruption because they are not provided with the simple, credible and viable mechanisms to effectively combat the menace.

Ghana’s ALAC will therefore fill this gap and provide the avenue for people and corporate bodies who have either become victims or witnesses of corrupt practices to lodge their complaint with the appropriate institutions for redress.

The focus of ALAC is to assist and give advice to victims and witnesses of corruption and to provide the avenues available to deal with the situation.

ALAC aims to:
• Provide legal advice and assistance to victims and witnesses of corruption;
• Empower citizens, residents and corporate bodies to make and pursue corruption and related complaints;
• Set up a database on corruption in the country based on complaints received from the public;
• Undertake advocacy for broader structural and institutional reforms with the view to minimizing corruption in Ghana;
• Partner with public institutions such as CHRAJ, SFO, Legal Aid Scheme, and the Attorney-General’s Department to handle corruption cases;
· Build synergies with civil society organizations with similar objectives to broaden the frontiers of a just, fair and caring society in Ghana that is free of corruption;
• Educate the public on corruption and related issues;
Services offered by ALAC are:
• Toll free hotline 080 – 010025 from Vodafone. Callers don’t pay for calls using the hotline anywhere in Ghana.
• Consultation with trained legal advisors;
• Case preparation;
• Referrals to anti-corruption Agencies for investigations and redress of complaints.
• All persons in Ghana including corporate bodies can access the services of the ALAC. Some beneficiaries are as follows:
• The indigent or poor and the vulnerable who otherwise may find it almost impossible to access or demand justice;
• Women and other marginalized groups in society;
• Individuals who are empowered and are seeking to assert their rights.
• ALAC deals with all types of reported instances of corrupt behaviour from small to large scale in service delivery. Cases may come from across sectors such as health, education, mining, business and governance from anywhere in Ghana.
• ALAC does not do the following:
• Pronounce judgment;
• Expose cases of corruption only to advocate for their solution, without campaigning against persons or institutions;
• Represent victims of corruption in courts;
• Investigate corruption cases;
• Publicize cases of corruption without prior consent of the parties involved in the matter;
• Pursue anonymous complaints.

Procedures for receiving complaints are:
• ALAC first receives complaints from the public;
• Requests documents/makes appointment with Legal Advisor (where ALAC can assist);
• Provided legal or extra legal advice to complaints;
• The Legal Advisor assists to draft and refer complaints to the appropriate authority for redress;
• Follows up on complaints lodged with the institutions to track outcomes;
· Uses data on complaints to advocate for greater structural and institutional changes.
You can contact ALAC in the following ways:
(a) Walk-ins
The Advocacy and Legal Advice Centre, Ghana Integrity Initiative, H/No. 21 Abelenkpe Road, Abelenkpe. (Near the Abelenkpe Traffic Light on the Word Miracle Church – Dimples Road
(b) By Post
PMB CT 317, Cantonments, Accra,

(c) By Telephone
021 – 760884
Free of charge call 080 - 010025

(d) By E-mail
alac@tighana.com
The public is called upon to join the crusade in the fight against corruption by making use of the services of ALAC free of charge.
Postscript: “The worker who steals a few boards is sent to prison for six years, but a
Minister (of state) can steal million and at worst he is demoted to trade attaché at some embassy”.
__Alexander Ruzkor, former Russian Vice President
Kwame Gyasi
Tel: 027 – 7588256
E-mail: makgyasi@ug.edu.gh

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