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Corruption fight: I'm going to adopt the Anas principle - What Nana Addo said in 2012

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) under President <a href="https://www.pulse.com.gh/news/local/govt-to-investigate-unedited-footage-of-anas-expose-on-galamsey/z1h7ywg" id="b6368265-1bce-4df5-b4d0-0857cc31031e">Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo</a> came to the realization, that after 8 years of the NDC government, the system had become an enabling ground for corruption. 
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo

As reforms, the Financial Administration Act, the Financial Management Act and the Public Procurement Act were introduced backed by public hearings of the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament among others.

But in the wake of exposé by investigate ace investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas on corruption and abuse of power in office, it has become very clear that the system is still seriously flawed.

The NPP is to use what it calls the Anas Principle to deal with corruption embedded within the tax collection agencies in the country if voted into power, then candidate Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo said.

Nana Addo during the third edition of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) presidential debate in Tamale prior to the 2012 elections announced to use Anas Principle to fight corruption..

He said an NPP government will motivate young people to do uncover investigations especially within the revenue collection agencies as a means to end the canker.

According to him, institutionalizing the Anas Principle will expose the corruption by the very people who are supposed to protect the country's revenue.

Nana Addo said persons caught in the investigate piece by Anas Aremeyaw Anas would be punished to serve as a deterrent to others who intend to toll the same line.

Here's what Nana Addo said in 2012 at the IEA:

He indicated that the socio-economic demands on government keep on increasing and without an integrated approach by revenue agencies in revenue mobilization; the national development budget could not be financed.

He stressed that the party's commitment to complete the National Identification exercise for easy identification of tax invaders in the country.

He said the unification of revenue agencies under one umbrella would relieve tax payers from the arduous task of getting registered with fragmented tax agencies and also save them from the frustration they had to endure in the hands of several auditors.

An unprecedented restructuring of the whole system is needed. Yet former Presidents have not shown any inclination to reforms.

In fact since late President John Evans Atta Mills took over in 2009, the proactive thing he did, in terms of corruption, was to change the name "Serious Fraud Office (SFO)" to the "Economic and Organised Crime Office" (EOCO). 

Thus Nana Addo's Anas Principle is a welcoming call. More loopholes would be plugged in the system but nothing has come to fruition.

Over the years, Anas has gone undercover numerous times to expose the corruption in our system. 

Some Ghanaians have expressed slow responsiveness of the government to the galamsey exposé by Anas in which a Presidential staffer and secretary to the Inter-Ministerial Taskforce on illegal mining was caught on tape receiving bribe.

Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah following the exposé has revealed that the government will examine the unedited footage.

According to him, investigations into the raw unedited footage of the documentary will determine the fate of persons implicated.

"Government will have the said tapes properly investigated using the raw unedited footage and if any persons are found to have solicited monies or taken bribes to bend rules the necessary action will be taken," he said.

But the question one may ask, should the government demand for the raw footage before prosecuting officials caught culpable of receiving bribe?

Also, the opposition NDC accused the government of dragging its feet and does not want to prosecute the embattled FA boss, Kwesi Nyantakyi who was caught in the Anas exposé titled Number #12.

Nyantakyi was banned for life from all football-related activities and in addition, was fined 500,000 Swiss Francs for breaching FIFA's conflict of interest and other corruption rules.

That investigation was later shown in a documentary titled #Number 12 and it uncovered bribery and corruption related activities by referees, and other football administrators.

The former football association president was caught in the video peddling influence and demanding from the supposed investor, who unknown to him was an undercover investigative journalist, an amount of money to settle Ghana’s president, vice and other ministers of state.

Nyantakyi told the investigator an amount of $11million will be enough to settle the most influential politicians in the country and facilitate his business activities in the country.

However, Attorney General Gloria Akufo said members of the GFA and match officials who were caught on camera receiving monies in the Anas documentary will not be incriminated due to lack of evidence.

She indicated that following investigations, there are no evidence to nail Nyantakyi and all other people in the football fraternity for their involvement in the scandal that rocked Ghana football.

"I have not received any docket for prosecution. It would be recalled that when the issues started, the CID started a probe. The probe is still on going and when they forward anything to me, I will look at it,"’ she said on Accra-based Rainbow Radio.

And there is no doubt that when the Anas Principle dragnet is cast under Nana's administration.

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