Executive Director of the Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG), Dr. Emmanuel Akwetey, has called for stricter measures to authenticate asset declarations by public officials, arguing that transparency and accountability in governance depend on proper verification.

Speaking at the National Economic Dialogue, Dr. Akwetey acknowledged former President John Dramani Mahama for leading by example in making his assets public.

However, he insisted that disclosure alone is insufficient and recommended that the Auditor-General be responsible for verifying such declarations.

“There is also the need for verification of declared assets by the Auditor General. The president has set the standard, he is the first person to announce that he declared his assets, and we all saw it on TV,” he noted.

He further encouraged all public officials to follow Mahama’s example but questioned whether these disclosures would be made accessible to the public for scrutiny.

“But we think that all public officers should do the same. However, it is not clear whether this will be made public. So that the assessment can be done also by the citizens they are representing in the high offices of state,” he added.

In addition to asset verification, Dr. Akwetey advocated for structural changes to limit executive influence over the legislature, stressing that such a move is necessary to maintain checks and balances.

He expressed concerns over the ruling party’s control of parliament, warning that an overwhelming majority could push through reforms without broader consensus, deepening political divides.

“It is essential to decouple parliamentary functions from the executive branch to promote checks and balances in governance. But we have a situation where this time, the governing party has the greatest majority,” he stated.

He cautioned against one-sided constitutional amendments, emphasizing that broad agreement is essential.

“With the governing party having almost absolute majority to push the agenda to push reforms, it could do it its way. That could end up intensifying division. Constitutional reforms require consensus even if it will not be entrenched,” he cautioned.