NDC states its anti corruption policy

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) said it would review the Criminal Offences Act to define corruption to encompass all corruption-related offences. "All offences that fall under the scope of the United Nations Convention against Corruption and the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption, will be captured," the NDC stated in its Election 2012 Manifesto obtained by the Ghana News Agency in Accra. It added: "Regulations under the Public Officers' Liability Act will be enacted in order to give legal force to the Guidelines on Conflict of Interest and the Code of Conduct for Public Officers prepared by the CHRAJ". "The next NDC administration would amend the Public Procurement Act to make it more user-friendly and capable of dealing with corruption in public procurement and regulations under the Act brought into force". According to the NDC it intends to revamp the internal audit system under a revised Internal Audit Agency Act to make it more effective to combat corruption and wastage, adding; "Financial Administration Tribunal will be established and begin operation within the first year of the next NDC Government". The NDC said it would strictly enforce the Mutual Legal Assistance Act of 2010 to deal with cross-border corruption.    The party seeks to trumpet its aim at fighting corruption to attract votes as it intensified its quest to retain power pledged its commitment and steadfast in combating political corruption and immorality in the Ghanaian society when its mandate is renewed to steer national affairs for the next four years. The party assured Ghanaians that the next NDC Government would revise Accra re-development policy to provide coherent and transparent guidelines on the acquisition of public lands. The NDC would set up a Committee of Enquiry to investigate untoward public land dealings in the past and sanction all those who, through fraudulent means, cheated the nation, the NDC said. The manifesto dubbed: "Advancing the Better Ghana Agenda," noted that under President John Dramani Mahama, the next NDC administration would empower the sole Commissioner to continue to investigate all disputed judgment debts and financial settlements against the state and action taken to retrieve monies wrongfully paid out from the Consolidated Fund. "The next NDC Administration will implement the Freedom of Information Act….the transparency and accountability record of the NDC Government has been sterling," it said. According to the party its position on corruption for Election 2012 hinges on what the party claims it has been "able to achieve in the last four years based on promises it made to Ghanaians in 2008". The party said whereas it has appointed a substantive Commissioner and a substantive second Deputy Commissioner to strengthen the Human Rights and Administrative Justice, the NDC Government in conjunction with key stakeholders has launched a National Anti-Corruption Action Plan. The NDC Government has established guidelines for the payment of judgment debts and monetary awards based on out-of-court settlements. "The Serious Fraud Office has been re-organised into the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) with an expanded legal framework; The NDC said that the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) regulations has been ratified; the Petroleum Revenue Management Act has also provided an open and transparent system for disclosure and monitoring of petroleum revenues while the Public Interest and Accountability Committee was functioning effectively. On narcotic terrorism, the NDC said it acknowledged that more effort was needed to ensure that the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB) deals effectively and efficiently with the drug menace. The next NDC Government has therefore proposed to intensify demand reduction and supply reduction methods of dealing with narcotic drugs as well as empower NACOB to undertake campaigns to create awareness about the effects of drugs. It was again established that NDC government would make NACOB a security agency to enable it to collaborate effectively with the other security agencies in dealing with drug traffickers. The NDC would also pursue the programme for legislative conversion of NACOB into an autonomous Commission, and establish drug rehabilitation centres for treatment, rehabilitation and re-integration into society of drug addicts. It said: "various reports by international drug enforcement agencies indicate a significant decline in drug trafficking from Ghana". The NDC therefore declares that the next NDC administration would "Revive the Alternative Development Programme as a means of reducing or eliminating the cultivation of cannabis in the country".

GNA