ghananlpcommunity/ghana-gov-speeches-sentences huggingface dataset:
Response 27: The decision to prepare a strategic plan and rebrand the Commission was a decision of the full commission at a meeting.
Quazar was selected out of three companies and contracted by the UNDP to assist the Commission complete its Strategic Plan and rebranding.
The UNDP was very happy with the services of Quazar and the UNDP has not submitted any complaints of any breaches in the award of contract process.
Indeed, representatives of Quazar had several meetings and workshops with senior staff and members of the Commission.
It is therefore unclear the basis for the complaints that the Chairperson unilaterally engaged the services of Quazar.
In addition, Quazar was not paid US25,000.
Quazar was paid about GHS23,000 as supported by the documents attached and marked CO27A.
It would be most helpful if the petitioners would get basic facts right.
FURTHER PARTICULARS 28.
It is worth pointing out, that while the Chairperson is persistently accused of arrogance and taking unilateral decisions, there is ample evidence of extreme arrogance, ineptitude and blatant breaches of the law by the deputy Chairpersons.
A few examples will suffice here: The Deputy Chairperson F/A has signed contracts worth over GHS40m without knowledge and authorization of the Chairperson between July-September 2015.
Payments were also made on these contracts in excess of her approval limits and again, without the knowledge and authorization of the Chairperson.
This is illegal, criminal and a breach of the policies of the Commission and the laws of Ghana.
The supporting documents would be submitted to the relevant investigative agencies for their further action.
In June 2017, the annual leave of Deputy Chair Operations was approved by the Deputy Chair CS without recourse to the Chairperson and signed on behalf of Chairperson by Deputy Chair CS while she herself was on leave.
This is poor knowledge of corporate governance and managerial ineptitude.
Indeed, the Deputy Chairperson CS has arrogated to herself the powers of the Chairperson, convening commission meetings and taking other ultra vires decisions in clear breach of the Law.
The Deputy Chair CS went on an unauthorised leave from May 19 - June 19 2017 without notice to the Chairperson and without prior approval.
A sick leave note was subsequently submitted to the Director of HR.
While on leave in June 2017, the deputy Chairperson without authorization and notice to the Chairperson, approved 2015 financial statements of the Commission, increased in the amount for fuel coupons beyond budgeted levels and without prior knowledge of the Chairperson or the Commission.
Clearly, there is ample evidence of poor knowledge of corporate governance, rules of public service financial management and general incompetence.
Under the supervision of the Deputy Chair CS, staff in the finance department have flouted many financial regulations, amended bank mandates, and made many unauthorized payments beyond their approval levels and without the knowledge of the Chairperson.
Again, supporting documents would be submitted to the appropriate agencies for further investigation.
The poor financial management systems within the Commission are systemic.
In some cases, Commission funds are paid into personal accounts of staff members in the region.
A surreptitious attempt was made to remove the Chairperson of the Commission from the GIFMIS platform to enable payments to be made on the blind side of the Chairperson.
The Deputy Chair Ops has persistently effected illegal vote transfers from his office on the Voter management System in clear breach of the law and operational policies of the Commission.
Such actions have major implications for the integrity of the work of the Commission and constitute abuse of office.
The Deputy Chair Operations collected above funds GHS 6m (Six million Ghana cedis) in cash from political parties for the organization of party primaries without recourse to the structures of the Commission, without the involvement of the finance department of the Commission.
Political party primaries were treated as a private commercial project by the Deputy Chair Ops, with funds paid directly into the personal accounts of key staff for functions to be performed for party primaries.
An internal audit report highlighting widespread malfeasance in the conduct of party primaries under the supervision of the Deputy Chair Operations is attached and marked CO28.
This situation cannot be allowed to continue.
It is clear from the manner in which these allegations have been laid – in the court of public opinion – based on no facts and only malicious intent of persons protecting corrupt and unscrupulous acts.
These acts enrich solely the practitioners of these acts, and there is no intent to abide by the law of the land nor truly be of service to the people of Ghana.
There is clearly, no established case of fraud or abuse of office made against the Chairperson.
The public purse, should be, and must be protected even at the EC.
The independence granted the Commission under the Constitution does not mean immunity to flout all the financial laws of Ghana, waste public funds and unlawfully enrich corrupt public officials.
The role of the EC is to enable the citizens to participate in free and fair elections – it has and will always remain the guiding principle of the Chairperson.
It is only those that are eager to subvert the law and engage in illegal actions that will not support this mandate in its implementation and vision of creating a World Class Electoral Commission.
Madam Chairperson, our respected host, distinguished guests, all protocol observed.
My sincere and deepest gratitude to Dr Charles Wereko-Brobby, the Chief Policy Analyst of the Ghana Institute for Public Policy Options (GIPPO) and the organisers of these lectures in honour and recognition of the life and work of the late Honourable Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, for the honour, to be the speaker for this year, and to share my thoughts on the Citizen and the Protection of the Public Purse.
As you will recall, the late Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu was a Member of Parliament and represented the people of Asante Akim North.
He was also Ghana’s Minister of Finance at the time of his death in 2008.
Before his appointment as Minister of Finance in 2005, he had also served as Minister for Local Government and Rural Development (2001–2003) and Minister of Education, Youth and Sports (2003–2005).
Minister for Information, Hon.
Deputy Ministers, Heads of Departments and Agencies, Chief Director, Directors, and Staff of the MoCD, our Media friends, Ladies and gentlemen, Thank you all for joining us today.
NGIC has been awarded a 5G license and is expected to launch 5G services across Ghana within the next six months, with plans for future expansion into other parts of Africa.
This collaboration ensures that we leverage cutting-edge world-class expertise and technology to build a robust digital infrastructure.
It will also facilitate the entry of other network operators into the Ghana market, riding on this infrastructure to deliver their services.
NGIC will enable a “reset” of Ghana’s economy by attracting investments across all sectors and providing access to all manner of e-services and improve the quality of life for all Ghanaians by ensuring that everyone, regardless of their location, has access to the latest digital services.
Efforts towards a 100% digital Ghana include rehabilitating critical national infrastructure such as the eastern corridor fibre, the national data center, and LTE FWA, building a rural telephony network connecting 3.4 million subscribers in rural communities, establishing the Cybersecurity Authority and resourcing the Data Protection Commission among other initiatives, all aimed at providing a resilient framework for digitalisation.
We have also built a high-speed E-Gov network connecting 951 public institutions and agencies across the country, powered by 3500 kms of newly laid fibre, providing a nationwide resilient 100Gbps optical fibre infrastructure that will serve as the platform for delivering 4G/5G services across Ghana.
As the sole wholesale 5G licensee in Ghana, NGIC will offer an open access-based neutral platform to all MNOs and collaborate with all tower companies in the country.
The company plans to launch affordable 4G/5Genabled Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) CPEs and smartphones within this calendar year.
NGIC plans to adopt India’s successful model of affordable handsets, digital platforms, and localized content to replicate high-speed mobile data access across Africa.
These improvements will support a range of new applications and services, from enhanced mobile broadband to massive machine-type communication and ultra-reliable low-latency communications.
Learning from previous experiences, where only one MNO had the means to acquire the 4G spectrum, the government has implemented policies to ensure every communications user has equal access to public and private digital services, regardless of their service provider.
Tech Mahindra will also set up its first global software delivery center in Ghana, enabling our youth to acquire cutting edge skills and lead in AI, robotics, machine learning, and automation.
Honourable Minister for Government Communications, Chief Director and Directors of the Ministry of Communication, Digital Technology and Innovation, Heads of Agencies under the Ministry and my esteemed friends in the media, good afternoon.
I have turned into action seeking to fulfil His Excellency’s mandate and the charge the Ghanaian people have entrusted into our care.
The technology sector is a central pillar of Ghana’s economic reset and is critical to positioning Ghana at the top of the digital and competitive global economy.
A landmark Memorandum of Understanding was signed with the MTN Group, with several other agreements with other private Ghanaian and International partners currently being finalised to support implementation, all aligned with our commitment to positioning Ghana as Africa’s premier digital talent hub.
1 am confident that several private partnership verticals would see us achieve the ambitious goal of positioning Ghana as a net exporter of critical digital skills in the short to medium term.
The Committee was given a 14-day mandate to deliver a roadmap for implementation to achieve more cost-effective data prices.
I am grateful to all the stakeholders who worked assiduously and at no cost to the State to produce a short, medium-and long-term approach to data price rationalisation in our Country.
I have studied the roadmap and referred it to the regulator – the National Communications Authority.
In the interim, I have agreed with all three network operators to have unique data bundle packages for all subscribers on five national holidays – Independence Day, May Day, Republic Day, Founder’s Day and Farmers Day.
On the back of these approvals, I wish to serve notice that the NCA would, within three months of the assignments of this additional spectrum, begin rigorous enforcement of Qos on the providers.
Failure to provide a marked improvement in the quality of service would result in stiff fines.
The Ministry and Regulator have a fidelity to the Ghanaian people to ensure they get the best customer service and experience.
The bleeding needs to be triaged, and urgent steps are underway to engage the company’s creditors in negotiating haircuts to ensure the company’s viability.
To effectively regulate technology in today’s fast-evolving digital environment, I have initiated a comprehensive review of existing legislation and regulatory frameworks.
The current State of the legislative environment of the Ministry is as follows; – The Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT has no Establishment Act – Ghana Telecom Act, 2003 – Postal and Courier Services Regulatory Commission Act 2003 (Act 649) and Regulation 2013 (L.I.
2205) – Electronic Communications Act, 2008 (Act 775) – Electronic Transactions Act, 2008 (Act 772) – National Communications Authority Act, 2008 (Act 769) – Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843) – Cybersecurity Act, 2020 (Act 1038) We are redrafting outdated laws to ensure they reflect present realities, anticipate future developments, and provide a transparent, enabling environment for innovation, investment, and consumer protection.
Ghana has entered strategic partnerships with key partners such as the British High Commission, UNESCO, and other international organisations to support efforts towards Ghana’s National Artificial Intelligence Strategy and blueprint.
Furthermore, the Ministry has commenced critical efforts to digitise the Nation’s essential data sets as a foundational step in our national Artificial Intelligence agenda.
Recognising how critical prudent expenditure management is to Ghana’s economic recovery, the Mahama Administration pledged to fight corruption and graft head-on.
In line with this commitment, one of my first actions was to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the Ministry’s financial position to guide how best to move forward.
One thing, however, is crystal clear to me as Minister – I would clean up the Ministry and its Agencies.
The contract is in two parts – one paid for by my Ministry through the NCA and another component paid for by the Ministry of Finance through the GRA.
By the end of the first 5- year term of the contract, however, the monthly fee represented about 50% of the revenue accruing to the State.
No formal renewals or new engagement frameworks are in place, raising questions about continued service provision and NITA’s legal or financial obligations.
The Ministry is in the process of assessing the necessity of continuing with either or both.
Sawtel and Dataceum in a bid to eliminate duplication and ensure cost-efficiency in future project management support for DSPP and to incorporate project management under the broader DSPP Governance Framework, as recommended in the DigitalGOV contract review, with clear reporting to NITA.
Upon receipt of NITA’s assessment report, I promptly took steps to restore compliance, transparency, and fiscal discipline in managing our national e government infrastructure.
Still, on the subject of stewardship, I have directed the National Communications Authority to conduct a frequent audit as part of the government’s “Operation Recover All Loot” (ORAL) initiative, aimed at identifying and reclaiming all State resources within the purview of the Ministry which may have been handed over to private interests in a manner inconsistent with law and laid down procedure.
The exercise, the first phase of a full audit of broadcasting frequencies to ensure proper management and compliance with legal procedures, identified incidents of non-compliance that would attract a total penalty tax of about 9.5 million Ghana Cedis and several infractions that warranted immediate shutdowns.
In the period under review, | have taken steps to better position Ghana Post to take advantage of the increased e-commerce activity and to ensure Ghana’s readiness to take full advantage of trading under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
I have also directed the Acting Administrator of the Universal Access Fund – GIFEC – to immediately begin an asset inventory of our infrastructure across the Country to ensure that these Centres built primarily under the first John Mahama administration are put to use as 360° whole of government centres bring digital government services to the doorsteps of Ghanaians.
GIFEC has also stepped up work to complete the Rural Telephony project to improve Ghana’s Digital Inclusion drive.
On the legislative flank, we have begun work to evolve GIFEC into the Digital Economy and Innovation Development Fund in line with the NDC’s Resetting Ghana manifesto.
Even as I remain focused on delivering on the President’s charge, I am minded by the increased incidents of orchestrated campaigns of mis(dis)information.
Ghana’s digital voice continues to be heard on the global stage.
Our priority remains clear as we advance: building a digital Ghana where innovation thrives, access is equitable, and all share technology’s benefits.
Ghana’s digital future is being built today with purpose, with strategic partnerships, and with the people at the centre.
Special Guest of Honour, Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, past and present Justices of the Supreme Court, for want of time, I humbly request to ride on existing protocols.
I wish to express my most profound gratitude to the UPSA Law School and the board of the OneGhana Movement for the courage in nominating me, ‘a layman’ , to deliver this year’s Constitution Day Public lecture.
At my last check, my academic bios had no certificates in law at all.
I have been content pursuing a career that has had significant impact on the delivery of critical public services and goods, with degrees in Economic Policy Management, Finance, Psychology and Philosophy from the University of Ghana, the only University I can call my own.
Ladies and gentlemen, my nomination to deliver this year’s lecture is no knock on any person who may be considered more qualified, nor a knock on the legal fraternity.
It is rather, a definite knock-on the hedged-in stereotypical thinking that has long held our public space hostage and validated perceptions of constitution capture, largely by lawyers and politicians.
The constitution is no abstract construct analyzable and decodable by a few.
It is the codification of what and how “We the people” seek to live and achieve in the governing of self as a sovereign.
A constitution enjoys a special place in the life of any nation.
It is the fundamental law of the land serving as the prime document of public policy and impacting all facets of society and life.
It is the reflection of the socio-political and socio-economic aspiration of “We the People” and not a given profession.
In the landmark ruling, “Tuffour vs Attorney General” reported in the 1980 Ghana Law Report, our former Chief Justice, E.N.P.
Sowah situates the constitution so effectively when he posits, (I quote), “A written Constitution such as ours is not an ordinary Act of Parliament.
It embodies the will of a people.
It also mirrors their history.
Yet again, we have scored 43 out of a possible 100 on the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI).
The results are disappointing.
Yes, we did not slip.
One will muse.
But we did not progress either.
We did not cross the threshold of an average mark.
That is our reality.
On the credit side of the table, we have put in applaudable efforts at tackling corruption – especially the rolling out of the National Anti-Corruption Action Plan and the foresightful creation of the Office of the Special Prosecutor as the flagship anti-corruption institution with the unique four-fold mandate of investigating corruption and corruption-related cases, prosecuting suspected offenders, recovering and managing assets, and taking steps to prevent corruption.
These and other interventions have no doubt kept as afloat above the average score of 32 in sub-Sahara Africa.
Yet, that should not be our benchmark – given our higher governance and democratic credentials; and our national psyche of a desire to attain the best of everything.
However, I am afraid I bear no good tidings on where we stand on corruption and justice – the focus of my comment.
We are standing at a single spot and spinning around slowly on one foot in a circle – much like a gyroscope.
The conversation is becoming sterile.
The fight against corruption is proving to be an unruly bride indeed.
She is not lending herself to agreeable domestication and cohabitation.
And we are not recording much success.
Our progress is hampered.
And we are unable to move the needle appreciably to improve our scorecard.
Our story is a rather curious cycle of self-defeat and disappearing acts.
We begin by collectively acknowledging that we must fight corruption.
That lights a glimmer on the horizon.
Then we dim the glimmer by approaching the enterprise of the fight against corruption half-heartedly.
That is to say – we certainly know the cure to the malaise; but we are unwillingly to take the medication fully.
It is as if we do not want to actually cure it, though we reckon it is slowly killing us.
It is as if we do not know what we want.
I sum up our story, thus – we must fight corruption, but we must not fight it.
Justice, fundamental to any thriving society, cannot flourish in the context of corruption.
The scales of justice should remain untainted if the fight against corruption is to attain any notable result.
Corruption itself is curtailed through justice.
And the absence of justice begets corruption.
It is much like light and darkness.
The brighter justice shines, the less corruption prevails.
Two factors assure this.
The defence of truth and the upholding of integrity.
This is our only sure bet.
If we stifle truth and we place no premium on integrity, we dim the light of justice and we darken the scourge of corruption.
That is to say – the absence of truth and integrity are the bedrocks of corruption.
Our collective behaviour shows that we do not reward integrity and truth is always the first casualty in the reckoning.
And the scorecard reflects our lack of faith in corruption fighting and justice delivery institutions.
Citizens view anti-corruption law enforcement institutions as largely hemmed in by political marginalization and thus, part of the problem.
This is because the citizens perceive a high incidence of impunity among the elite.
And that corruption investigations would invariably amount to nothing and yield no consequences.
The judiciary is not spared either.
The results show that citizens see the judiciary as also part of the problem.
They hardly separate the judiciary from the government.
They see it all as one – and every ill they attach to the government; they extend the same attitude to the judiciary.
Further, citizens perceive a deficit of the defence of truth and the placement of little premium on integrity.
True it is – that the results are perception-based and not an outcome of concretely established corruption.
However, the measurement of corruption in absolute terms is extremely difficult.
Therefore, the next best method is assessing its prevalence from the perception of experts and businesspersons.
On that reckoning, it is observed that countries with a low risk of corruption consistently exhibit notable improvement on the CPI; while those with high risks tend to either regress or remain stagnant.
Even so, it bears pause and reflection.
This is because if there is a strong perception that tilts the scale that corruption thrives in this Republic, we cannot dismiss it as unproved and not actually based on hard evidence.
We must address the problem frontally.
May I offer my musings in the defence of truth and in the assurance of integrity in aid of repressing and suppressing corruption: May we assure the entrenchment of anti-corruption law enforcement institutions.
In addition to the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, may we write anti-corruption law enforcement institutions into the Constitution – especially the flagship Office of the Special Prosecutor.
May we enlarge the powers and mandate of anti-corruption law enforcement institutions.
May we insulate anti-corruption law enforcement institutions from political marginalization.
May we insulate anti-corruption law enforcement institutions from reprisals.
May we include the Office of the Special Prosecutor in the membership of the Judicial Council.
May we assure anti-corruption law enforcement institutions the flow of adequate resources.
May we assure, in actual practice, the independence of the judiciary.
May we ensure that judges would adjudicate with boldness and without fear of reprisals.
May we ensure that judges would adjudicate without fear of compromising their promotion and advancement.
May we set up a specialised anti-corruption court manned by specially trained judges in the field to swiftly and efficiently deal with corruption cases.
May we remunerate judges and officers of anti-corruption law enforcement institutions adequately.
They are human after all.
Hunger and squalor beget a natural edge to cut a corner or two or three – till it becomes habitual and a culture.
Perhaps I know how to assure my own integrity.