Mr. Lan Kwame Tugbenu, the Metropolitan NCCE Officer has said corruption is one of the major cankers impeding the growth and development of the nation which calls for a concerted efforts to nib it in the bud.

He mentioned that proper management of public affairs and property, integrity, transparency and accountability were cardinal elements in the quest for a corruption free society adding, “Change must come and it should start with me and you”.

The NCCE officer was speaking at one of the lectures and education series sponsored by the European Union to educate identifiable groups and communities on the need to disengage from corruption practices in everyday endeavour that would ultimately benefit the state and its development.

Corruption according to Transparency International is the abuse of public or private office for personal gains and the four categories of corruption are ;The grand corruption committed at a high level of government that distort policies or the central functioning of the state and petty corruption which is the everyday abuse of entrusted power by low and mid-level public officials in their daily interaction with citizenry.

Political corruption which refers to the abuse of position by people in power to sustain their power, status and wealth andSystemic corruption that alters the implementation of policies such as issuing and procuring of licenses to favour people in return for favours which result in giving people who do not all the time quality.

Mr. Tugbenu said corruption in the form of bribery, nepotism, fraud, embezzlement, looting, kickbacks and common ones associated with teachers, health workers and the police service all undermined the country’s development. He said, corruption must not be seen in any way as normal adding, “This is a practice which retards economic growth, encouraged capital flight and inflation of administrative cost”.

The NCCE officer said entertaining corrupt practices was detrimental to national development as a result of shoddy infrastructure, undermined integrity, democracy and good governance and low productivity.

Corruption, he said if not checked and stopped would lead to a culture of impunity where everybody may engage in the practice because offenders were not sanctioned.

Mr. Tugbenu said in Ghana, corruption was one of the major developmental challenges as majority of Ghanaians were compelled to pay a bribe for basic services and rights.

“It is therefore imperative for the country to do more to overcome this social problem…we need to pay attention to inadequate supervisions and weak oversight, weak and under resourced state accountability institutions to enable them carry out their mandate of prosecution”.