Daniel Yaw Domelevo, a former Auditor-General of Ghana, has voiced concerns over the pervasive conflict of interest among public officials in the country.
His remarks come in the wake of the Airbus scandal, where Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng identified former President John Dramani Mahama as “Government Official 1” in a case involving a deal facilitated by his brother, Foster Adams Mahama.
Despite this identification, no evidence of corruption was found against Mahama.
The UK Serious Fraud Office had previously fined Airbus SE €3.9 billion for bribery related to aircraft sales in 13 countries, including Ghana.
In an interview with Channel One News, Domelevo attributed the prevalence of conflict-of-interest cases to the delays in passing the Conduct of Public Officeholders Bill.
He criticised politicians, who he believes are the main culprits of these conflicts, for their lack of commitment to advancing the bill.
He urged that for genuine accountability and proper conduct among public officers, it was crucial that the Conduct of Public Officeholders Bill be passed promptly.
“I believe that the reason that bill is not going through is because the people who are supposed to facilitate that bill know that they are the highest or the biggest culprits. They have been involved in several issues of conflict of interest, family and friends, business, et cetera which that bill is aimed at addressing.
“So, if we are serious with ensuring that public officers do the right thing, that Conduct of Public Office Holders’ bill must be passed,” Mr Domelevo stated.
