Former President Jerry John Rawlings has said the anti-corruption crusade in the country will only bear fruit if state institutions are made independent of government.
He said there was the need to ensure that such institutions were independent as stated in the Constitution and well-resourced to play their roles ‘without fear or favor’.
Flight Lieutenant Rawlings, said this when he addressed a durbar to climax the celebration of the 2017 Ahobaa Kese festival of the chiefs and people of Abeadze in the Central Region.
The festival was on the theme, “Reminiscing the past, Consolidating the Foundation and Building the Future”.
“I have always and will continue to call for support to combat corruption, a social evil that is eating the country up with cancerous abandonment; one should not be blinded by political influences and that as a people we should support all who desire to tackle the problem irrespective of where he or she is aligned politically,” he said.
The Former President said the society has deteriorated primarily because people no longer had value for culture, customs and social behaviours that the ancestors held so high and were able to overcome many challenges.
“We cannot continue to manage our country in a selfish, self-serving manner that exploits resources meant for the larger community and we pay lip service to their irresponsibility and indiscipline.
“Our leaders have to lead the change in curbing the rot that threatens us and there is the need for traditional leaders especially to lead this agenda right from their various communities by applying the extra-judicial powers that they possess more responsibly,” Former President Rawlings said.
He urged the National House of Chiefs to check errant chiefs who abuse the chieftaincy institution and to also regularly counsel the government and Municipal and District Authorities to take decisions that benefit the communities.
He said the sense of commitment to the good of the country has declined with many people not even understanding what patriotism stood for.
The Former President mentioned education, job creation, leadership and indiscipline as some of the challenges the nation faced, adding that as a Nation we have been overcome by these challenges because of corruption. “The end result of the quest to clean up our society will benefit all and sundry, but for us to succeed we all have to support the agenda and commit to living above reproach,” he added.
