From Scandal to Systemic Reform: A Citizen’s Call for Moral Governance in Ghana

Abstract:
Between 2017 and 2025, Ghana has weathered a staggering catalogue of corruption scandals and administrative failures under the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia leadership. This article catalogs more than 120 allegations, not for the sake of cynicism, but as a moral audit and national wake-up call. It ends with actionable reforms for Ghana’s political future.

The Weight of Silence
For over eight years, Ghana’s governance landscape has been punctuated by headlines so damning they now evoke weary resignation. From vanished excavators and inflated contracts to family-studded ambassadorial appointments, we are drowning in normalized impunity. But silence, too, is complicity. This article catalogs over 120 high-profile allegations not to incite despair—but to provoke moral courage.

The Anatomy of Failure
1. Corruption and Procurement Breaches

More than 30 allegations center on questionable procurement practices—ranging from the $89 million KelniGVG deal to the SML Ghana revenue assurance contract, both awarded without competitive bidding. Add to this inflated costs (e.g. $75,000 buses sold for $175,000), and the stench of misgovernance thickens.

2. Galamsey, Gold, and Guns: The Tragedy of Resource Mismanagement

Seized excavators? Missing. Gold bars and pickups? Gone. Trillions invested in monitoring and enforcement? Results invisible. Communities most affected by illegal mining suffer poisoned rivers while elite actors profit from a shattered regulatory regime.

3. The Politics of Privilege: Nepotism and Conflicts of Interest

Why does governance increasingly resemble a family business? From embassies to major contracts, ties to the presidency and ruling party have emerged as the primary qualification. The result? A hollow state, feeding private appetites on public time.

4. Institutional Capture and Broken Accountability

Auditor-General Daniel Domelevo’s ousting, EOCO officials sidelined, and PPA manipulation through sole sourcing mark a pattern: institutions that challenge power are either crippled or co-opted. Ghana’s moral compass is spinning wildly—and it shows.

What These Scandals Cost Us

• Trust: Citizens view political office as a get-rich scheme, not a public calling.
• Talent: Ethical leaders are either sidelined or demoralized.
• Treasury: An estimated GHS 27 billion lost—funds that could've built roads, hospitals, and schools.
• Time: Every year of weak governance is a decade lost in development.

A Moral and Structural Path Forward
Ghana’s redemption will not come from better slogans, but from structural reengineering:

1. Institutional Independence: The Office of Special Prosecutor, Auditor-General, and CHRAJ must have constitutionally guaranteed operational autonomy—and non-renewable terms.

2. Lifestyle Audits: Mandatory, yearly audits for public officials and their spouses—with randomized third-party oversight.

3. Whistleblower Protection Fund: Encourage civic courage with safety nets, legal defense funds, and anonymity systems.

4. Open Contracting Portal: Real-time access to all public procurement documents, digitally accessible to citizens and journalists.

5. Judicial Fast-Track Units: Designated courts with prosecutorial independence to handle corruption cases swiftly.

Our Integrity is Our Inheritance
We must remember: no nation has ever prospered by honoring thieves. While accountability delayed is not always accountability denied, we are fast approaching a point of no return. This is not a partisan cry—it is a moral reckoning. If Ghana is to fulfill her potential, we must move from a politics of profit to a politics of purpose.

List of Scandals
There is a separate article that features a meticulously curated list of over 120 alleged scandals and governance breaches spanning 2017 to 2025—each a marker of systemic failure. From vanished excavators and inflated contracts to institutional silencing and nepotism, these entries paint a troubling portrait of a republic adrift. Readers are invited not merely to browse the list, but to engage it as a civic audit—a call to conscience, and a demand for justice. In naming these events, we reclaim our right to truth, transparency, and accountability.🇬🇭✨

Retired Senior Citizen
Teshie-Nungua
[email protected]