South Dayi lawmaker Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor says that former President John Dramani Mahama demonstrated political will and fought corruption far better than President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is doing currently.

He says that Mr Mahama even prosecuted persons close to his administration for perceived corruption but the same cannot be said about President Akufo-Addo when evidence of corruption abounds.

To him, strong political will is what is needed to reduce corruption to its lower level.

“Political will is what is needed to fight corruption,” he said on the Key Points on TV3 Saturday Febraury 3 regarding the Corruption Perceptions Index report by Transparency International, released on Tuesday, January 30, ranking Ghana in the 70th position out of 180 countries monitored.

For his part, private legal practitioner, Martin Kpebu, has said that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo lost the fight against corruption when he appointed his relatives as ministers of state.

To him, Mr Akufo-Addo’s assurance to fight corruption when he was in opposition was mere rhetoric.

Speaking on the Key Points on TV3 Saturday Febraury 3 regarding the Corruption Perceptions Index report by Transparency International, released on Tuesday, January 30, ranking Ghana in the 70th position out of 180 countries monitored, Kpebu said “It tells you Akufo-Addo and his administration lost the fight a long time ago. We will never recover as long as his family and friends are still in government

“Akufo-Addo is interested in grandstanding, he came in with his brothers and sisters as ministers and that is a sign of corruption. Ofori-Atta, Amoako Attah, Atta Akyea. Some are saying they are qualified but candidate Akufo-Addo told us that family and friends’ governance is corruption.”

“As for the family and friends, it is all over Akufo-Addo’s administration,” he stressed.

But Member of Parliament for Asante Akim North, Kwame Andy Appiah-Kubi opposed the trend where President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is blamed for acts of corruption by other officers who are not even close to the presidency.

Mr Appia-Kubi, also a private legal practitioner who has been reelected to represent the New Patriotic Party (NPP) again in the 2024 elections in the constituency, said that state investigative bodies have been mandated and empowered under the law to fight corruption.

The President, he said, cannot come in since that would amount to interfering with the work of these institutions.

“It is not enough to target the president when the president doesn’t have the mandate or the laws do not allow him to interfere. Those bodies that enjoy independence should do the job,” he also said on the Key Points on TV3 Saturday Febraury 3.

The CPI Report further revealed that 90 percent of the countries in Sub-Saharan Africa scored less than fifty.

The average score for African countries is still quite low, at just 33 out of 100.

“Ghana scored 43 out of a clean score of 100 and ranked 70th out of 180 countries and territories included in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2023 released today, 30th January 2024 by Transparency International (TI).”

“This marks the fourth consecutive year of stagnation in Ghana’s anti-corruption efforts, as indicated by the CPI,” it added.