Corruption...Prez Mahama Calls For Support

In his quest to stamp out corruption, President John Dramani Mahama has asked Ghanaians to help him fight the canker. He said in order to get rid of the canker, it is important to have all hands on deck in all sectors. He said further that it would not be right for people to sit on the fence with issues of corruption, adding that the government would be setting up a public complaint centre to collate information on allegations of corruption. President Mahama was addressing Muslims during their Eid-ul-Adha festival at the Independence Square yesterday. The well-composed president noted that the identity of individuals who provide information on allegations of corruption would be protected. Speaking on various attempts he has taken to fight corruption, President Mahama says he and his National Democratic Congress (NDC) government are committed to fighting corruption. He said because he was determined to fight the canker, when his attention was drawn to the report of Ghana Youth Employment and Entrepreneurial Development Agency (GYEEDA), he asked the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) to start working on it and that individuals implicated in the report had been invited and interrogated by the CID. He added that when the CID completes its investigations, whoever is found culpable would be prosecuted. �We are taking action on corruption that is brought to our attention. We have investigated the GYEEDA report and we are implementing the recommendations. Those who were indicted in the report, I am happy to say the CID has invited them and commenced investigations into what they did and if they are found culpable, the dockets will be prepared and given to the Attorney General in order that they will be prosecuted,� President noted. In addition to his firm dedication, he said he had asked the Attorney General�s Department to study the Auditor General�s report and work on it. �I have also asked the Attorney General to study the Auditor General�s report and for cases that require prosecution to put such people before court,� the President revealed. Touching on the essence of religion, he urged all believers to eschew all forms of violence and remain peaceful and love one another. �At the basis of all religion are two words and those two words are peace and love. In every religion you can find in this world, the basis for religion is peace and love; peace and love for our fellow men. But if you take the good books of all the religions and you are looking for a verse to justify violence, you would find it but violence is not the foundation of the religion. The foundation of the religion is peace and love,� he reiterated. He admonished people to stop misinterpreting their Holy Books to justify �wreaking violence on fellow citizens� so that we do not have a repeat of the devastating Kenya Westgate Mall attack in which Ghana�s Professor Kofi Awoonor, former Chairman of the Council of State, died. �There can be no justification for this kind of action in any religion,� President Mahama noted, urging everyone to condemn all acts of terrorism. �No country in this world, no person in this world, is free from the scourge of terrorism. Terrorism in any part of the world is an infliction on the whole world and all of us are vulnerable. Islam and Christianity have lived in perfect peace in our country for a very long time and I am very happy and thankful to God for this peaceful coexistence that exists among religions in our country.� He expressed his appreciation and thanks to the various religious leaders in Ghana. President Mahama said our conduct after the Supreme Court ruling had raised Ghana�s image in the eyes of the international community. He urged all Ghanaians not to relax, but remain vigilant and report any �suspicious behaviour� of people to the security agencies. �Let us not let down our guard, let us be vigilant and watch out. People might attempt to infiltrate our ranks and wreak terrorism on us. If you observe somebody behaving in ways that are not normal to the peace that we enjoy in this country, be quick to alert the security agencies about such a person.� Touching on the economy, President Mahama said the challenges that we are currently facing in our economy are �temporary,� since Ghana has very bright economic prospects. �We are going to harness those prospects to create a decent and dignified life for all our people. Any economic hardships we are facing are only temporary and I assure you that from next year, you will begin to see some good results,� he concluded.