Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, has expressed his apprehension over the declaration of assets by government officials as mandated by the Public Office Holders Act.

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Justifying his opposition, he indicated such an initiative puts public officers in a position where they expose themselves to unnecessary attention and potential threats against their lives and their loved ones.

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“I do not and I will not add my voice to calls for the publication of assets for public scrutiny. In our experience, it will be unhelpful and would merely subject public officers to inordinate public curiosity and a specter of the real likelihood of reprisals against the assets,” he said.

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The Special Prosecutor made these remarks at the High-Level Conference on Ghana’s Anti-Corruption Architecture, held under the theme “Revitalizing the Anti-Corruption Architecture in Africa: Ghana’s Accountability Journey,” in Accra on Friday, June 6.

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To him, fighting corruption effectively in the country requires striking a balance between transparency and the protection of individual rights.

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“In my estimation, publication of who has declared or has not declared his assets in the context of a workable asset verification and treason model would be sufficient to assure the integrity of the asset declaration system,” he added.

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The legal framework guiding asset declaration is the Public Office Holders (Declaration of Assets and Disqualification) Act, 1998 (Act 550). The Act mandates public officials to declare their assets before assuming office, every four years, and at the end of their term, submitting the forms no later than six months after any of these events.

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Importantly, Section 8 of the Act provides that allegations of non-compliance must be referred to the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), which is empowered to investigate and take appropriate action.

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President John Dramani Mahama submitted his asset declaration forms to the Auditor General on February 18 and issued a firm order to his appointees to follow suit by March, warning of sanctions for defaulters.

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A report by The Fourth Estate revealed that several high-ranking officials have yet to fulfill their constitutional obligations. Out of 55 ministers and deputy ministers, nine have failed to declare their assets.

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Additionally, eight out of 32 presidential staffers and 37 out of 84 heads of state institutions appointed between January 15 and March 18 had not complied with the president’s directive.

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On May 6, the president sanctioned his appointees who missed the March 31 deadline by directing them to forfeit their three months' salary, which he noted will be channeled into the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, also known as The MahamaCares, a landmark initiative aimed at providing financial assistance to individuals living with chronic diseases across the country.

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He gave a May 7 ultimatum, emphasizing that any official who fails to meet the deadline will be sacked. As no government official has been relieved of his or her duties, it is believed that all government officials have declared their assets.In the meantime, civil society groups and anti-corruption advocates have supported the full publication of asset declarations as a means to promote integrity and accountability.

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