The Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC) has raised concerns over the extremely low rate of reporting of bribery incidents in Ghana, with 94.2 percent of citizens who encountered bribery failing to report the incidents.
The figure is contained in the coalition’s latest State of Corruption Report, which highlights persistent challenges in the country’s fight against corruption.
According to the report, 14.3 percent of respondents admitted to giving gifts, mostly money, to public officials to access government services.
Although this represents a decline from the previous figure of 18 percent, the GACC says the situation remains troubling.
Speaking on the report on Thursday, August 20, GACC Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, Solomon Nyankah, attributed the low reporting rate partly to fears of retaliation and a lack of confidence in the institutions responsible for handling corruption complaints.
He said some citizens feared losing their jobs, facing threats or exposing themselves and their families to danger if they reported corrupt practices.
Others, he noted, were reluctant because they believed their complaints would not result in meaningful action.
Nyankah stressed the need for stronger enforcement of existing whistleblower and witness protection laws to restore public confidence in the reporting system.
Meanwhile, GACC Programmes Officer Samuel Harrison-Cudjoe said the decline in reported bribery cases was encouraging but insisted that Ghana should ultimately aim for zero tolerance.
He explained that bureaucratic delays and the desire to obtain public services quickly often push citizens towards paying unofficial fees.
Some also resort to bribery to avoid difficulties when dealing with law enforcement officers.
The GACC is therefore calling for intensified public education, stronger enforcement of anti-corruption laws and adequate resources for anti-corruption institutions.
