“Ghana must declare corruption a national emergency”

The Chief Executive Officer of AfriKan Continental Union Consult (ACUC-Ghana), Benjamin Anyagre Aziginaateeg, has called on the government to declare corruption a national emergency, warning that Ghana’s development and sovereignty are at risk if decisive reforms are not rolled out.

In a press statement, Aziginaateeg described corruption as one of Ghana’s deepest governance challenges since independence, stressing that decades of anti-corruption rhetoric have failed to curb the canker.

“If corruption is not confronted decisively, Ghana risks grinding to a self-destructive halt, with lost development opportunities, weakened sovereignty, and declining public trust in governance,” he cautioned.

He argued that successive governments have lacked the political will to enforce real accountability, while state capture by political and business elites has undermined institutions. Ordinary citizens, he said, continue to suffer poverty, unemployment, and poor infrastructure as public resources are diverted into private pockets.

To reverse this, Aziginaateeg proposed what he termed a “Frontal Attack on Corruption”, built on integrated measures such as:

A nationwide Operation Recover All Loots (ORAL) to track and retrieve stolen funds.
Empowering anti-graft bodies like EOCO and SFO with independent authority and fast-track corruption courts.
Enforcing lifestyle audits of politicians and senior officials, treating illicit enrichment as economic treason.
Establishing Africa’s first Anti-Corruption Training Institute to groom ethical public servants.
Embedding civic education and integrity values in schools to reshape culture and mindset.
Abolishing partisan contract rewards and deploying “military-civilian infrastructural brigades” to curb corruption in procurement.

Aziginaateeg further insisted that corruption must no longer be treated as an abstract problem but as an existential threat requiring radical national action.

“Our country must recover billions in stolen wealth for development and build a system where corruption is unattractive, punishable, and preventable,” he emphasized.

He maintained that if implemented, the proposed reforms could transform Ghana into a continental model of good governance and cement the President’s legacy as Africa’s foremost anti-corruption reformer.

Find below the statement…

RESTORING NATIONAL PRIDE: GHANA’S BOLD PATH TO A CORRUPTION-FREE FUTURE

Background

Since independence, corruption has remained one of Ghana’s deepest governance challenges.

Every administration has pledged “zero tolerance,” yet the system has lacked the political will to enforce real accountability.

Corruption has spread across state institutions, public services, and political structures, draining national resources.

The Ghanaian people now perceive politics as a means of personal enrichment rather than public service.

Challenges–

Despite reforms and anti-corruption rhetoric, systemic corruption continues to thrive:

State capture by political and business elites undermines accountability.
Illicit financial flows and unexplained wealth weaken the economy.
Weak auditing systems and bureaucratic bottlenecks enable rent-seeking.
Public institutions tasked with fighting corruption remain underfunded or politically influenced.
Citizens experience poverty, unemployment, and poor infrastructure while public officials enjoy lavish lifestyles.

If corruption is not confronted decisively, Ghana risks grinding to a self-destructive halt, with lost development opportunities, weakened sovereignty, and declining public trust in governance.

The question-

How can Ghana decisively break the cycle of systemic corruption, recover stolen resources, and create a governance culture where corruption is unattractive, punishable, and preventable?

Way forward-

Ghana must launch a Frontal Attack on Corruption through the following integrated measures:

Operation Recover All Loots (ORAL) – Focused – based approach by the national anti-corruption task force mandated to recover stolen state funds, operate free from elite influence, and publish its findings for public accountability.
Institutional Empowerment – Strengthen the Attorney General, EOCO, SFO, and Whistleblower Protection Units; establish fast-track corruption courts.
Lifestyle Audit Law – Enforce routine lifestyle audits of politicians and senior officials.

Treat illicit enrichment and state capture as economic treason.

Systemic Reforms – Streamline bureaucracy, strengthen internal and external audits, and ensure a living wage through savings from reduced corruption.
Government Institute of Anti-Corruption (GIAC) – Establish Africa’s First Anti-Corruption Training Institute (ACTI) to groom future public servants in ethics and financial discipline.
Preventive Education & Cultural Renewal –

Integrate civic responsibility, criminal code basics, and cultural values of integrity into school curricula.

Corrective schools run by the Prison Service to address recalcitrant pupils.

Development Without Corruption – Reduce corruption in infrastructure and procurement by 90%,

abolish partisan contract rewards,

and introduce Military-Civilian Infrastructural Brigades.

National Emergency Approach – Declare corruption a national emergency and existential threat, with drastic punitive measures and uncompromising political will.

Outcome –

If implemented, these measures will: