Fulfilling the Anti-Corruption Mandate of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) Under the Fourth Republic of Ghana (1993-2020): An Assessment

Abstract

The anti-corruption drive attracted global attention and debate among scholars, practitioners and development partners, particularly during the 1990s aimed at promoting good governance, effective and efficient public service delivery. The effective performance of anti-corruption institutions (ACIs) has raised concerns, especially in most African countries, due to their stagnation and lower scores in various governance and corruption indexes and surveys. Ghana's stagnation in the fight against corruption continues to trigger renewed debate over the relevance of the existence of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) as the first independent constitutionally mandated body created under the Fourth Republican Constitution to curb corruption. This skepticism over the performance of the CHRAJ, coupled with improving the fight against corruption and strengthening democratic governance, motivated this study. Accordingly, this study assesses how the CHRAJ has fulfilled its anti-corruption mandate since its inception under the Fourth Republic of Ghana. The study employed the principal-agent theory and the concept of accountability as its theoretical framework. It further deployed qualitative research methods, out of which semi structured interviews, documents and thematic analysis were used to undertake the empirical chapters. It interviewed forty-four (44) respondents including Commissioners of CHRAJ, directors and staff of the CHRAJ. Other respondents were purposively selected from public institutions, civil society organisations, members of the media, policy think tanks, private sector organisations and development partners. It used the CHRAJ headquarters as the case study and relied on primary and secondary data to assess CHRAJ. The study found that despite Ghana's progress at constitutional democratic governance in Africa, the country is not immune from corruption's menace leading to its stagnation in the anti-corruption fight. It also found that the country had adopted comprehensive constitutional, legislative, and institutional reforms and strategies to fight corruption under the Fourth Republic. Nevertheless, it lacks the political will and bureaucratic commitment to implement anti-corruption policies to achieve the desired outcome effectively. In addition, CHRAJ has played a critical role in preventing corruption under Ghana's Fourth Republic through constitutional, legislative and policy frameworks. Some preventive activities undertaken include the development of the National Anti-corruption Action Plan (NACAP). Others are training and education on public sector code of conduct, sexual harassment policies, public sector ethics and anti-corruption legislation. CHRAJ has implemented its original and additional functions, including investigating low and high-profile anti-corruption cases, and collaborations on anti-corruption activities. Furthermore, the anti-corruption activities by CHRAJ have increased the level of intolerance and awareness-creation on corruption in Ghana. However, the CHRAJ was ineffective in adequately addressing corruption within the political parties and prosecution of anti-corruption cases. The study concluded that CHRAJ has played a major role in the fight against corruption under Ghana's Fourth Republic through constitutional, legislative and policy frameworks. However, the effective democratic efforts in the fight against corruption in Ghana is a shared responsibility of the CHRAJ in partnership with different stakeholders, which includes the oversight responsibility of state institutions like the Parliament, the Judiciary, the Attorney General, the Office of the Special Prosecutor, the Police, as well as the media, CSOs, and the citizenry. Based on the findings, the study made several recommendations to improve the fight against corruption by CHRAJ. The government to enact comprehensive legislation with clear definitions of the various types of corruption. Parliament to pass the Code of Conduct for Public Officers Bill and other anti-corruption legislations, Government to ensure compliance and enforcement of anti-corruption laws and policies. Other recommendations are to increase public education and training on anti-corruption and ethics within public service, ensure CHRAJ has independent funding, strengthen collaborations among stakeholders, improve internal capacity, and implement the Constitutional Review Committee (CRC) recommendations on CHRAJ. Some of the lessons learned include effective anti-corruption laws, policies and anti-corruption institutions do not effectively address corruption except a demonstrated political will and bureaucratic commitment to fight corruption. Also, an enhanced governance system and a holistic approach are central to winning the fight against corruption. The study proposes the following agenda for future research: (i) the use of mixed methods to assess the CHRAJ and similar institutions worldwide; (ii)the assessment of the CHRAJ within the regions and districts of the country; and (iii) the assessment of the contribution of independent statutory institutions to the consolidation of Ghana's democratic governance.