VZCZCXRO6550
RR RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHAR #1283/01 3371450
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 031450Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY ACCRA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8590
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 0357

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ACCRA 001283 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958; N/A 
TAGS: PGOV KCOR PHUM GH
SUBJECT: Anti-Corruption Chief cites need to attack culture of 
corruption 
 
Ref: Accra 1068, Accra 1085 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: Emile Short, the head of Ghana's leading 
anti-corruption institution, the Commission for Human Rights and 
Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), said that combating corruption is 
his highest priority, but resource limitations limit his agency's 
effectiveness and low salaries cause excessive staff turnover. 
Short noted that while CHRAJ maintains a constitutionally guaranteed 
independence, its effectiveness is limited by its inability to 
initiate prosecutions - a function reserved to the 
politically-appointed Attorney General.  Short said he is working on 
a national strategy to combat corruption, and that the government 
needs a "holistic" approach to fight the culture of corruption. 
Short commended President Mills for tough action against corruption, 
including the recent firing of three ministers accused of 
corruption.  He complained, however, that the British government has 
not cooperated sufficiently with CHRAJ in investigating the Mabey 
and Johnson bribery case.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) During a November 16 meeting with POL Chief, CHRAJ 
Commissioner Emile Short said Ghana had made remarkable progress, 
but that democracy remains a work in progress.  Short recently 
returned to his post after serving as a judge on the International 
Criminal Court for Rwanda in Arusha, Tanzania.  While commending 
Ghana's five elections and two transfers of power between the 
National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) 
as an example of Ghana's political pluralism, Short criticized the 
intense partisan divisions and acrimony - often resulting in 
grassroots violence - between the two principal parties. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Short also said that Ghana lacks strong and independent 
institutional safeguards.  He noted that the press is often reckless 
and that much of the privately owned media is merely a medium for 
government or opposition propaganda. 
 
Priorities: Anti-Corruption, Human Rights, Rule of Law 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) Short said CHRAJ's priorities are combating corruption, 
protecting human rights, and supporting the rule of law.  CHRAJ 
wants to promote greater public education and training on human 
rights.  Short said human rights abuses occur primarily at the hands 
of the security services and in the prison system.  He expressed his 
desire to reduce the number of remand prisoners to decrease prison 
overcrowding.  Short added that Ghana has fallen short in promoting 
opportunities for women, as well as the rights of vulnerable groups 
including people with disabilities. 
 
Resource Limitations 
-------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Short described CHRAJ as an accessible venue for Ghanaians 
to seek redress for grievances against abuses committed by the 
government or private individuals.  However, he said that inadequate 
funding has limited CHRAJ's ability to fulfill its mandate, and poor 
conditions of service - including low salaries - have led to high 
turnover among CHRAJ staff and limited the agency's ability to 
attract and retain competent and dedicated professionals.  Short 
said this has led to a large backlog of cases at the Commission. 
Short said that the Single Spine Salary structure (a civil service 
reform likely to be introduced in January 2010) would lift overall 
salaries and help address this problem. 
 
Corruption - Finalizing a National Action Plan 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶6. (SBU) Short stressed that fighting corruption is his top 
priority.  He noted that the Commission has a separate department 
for corruption, with six dedicated senior staff.  CHRAJ is 
finalizing a "National Action Plan against Corruption" and, in 
partnership with government, intends to launch the plan by the end 
of the year.  [Note: On December 1, Short told POL Chief that he 
expects President Mills to formally approve the action plan around 
December 9. End Note].  He said that while the government has taken 
some positive steps against corruption, it lacks a "holistic" 
strategy to address what has become a pervasive problem in the 
public service, and that the strategy needs to instill an 
anti-corruption "culture" in government, so that corruption is 
simultaneously prevented and punished. 
 
¶7. (SBU) Short said corruption remains persistent, and has damaged 
the government's credibility.  Short cited the inconsistent and 
unpredictable nature of government licensing and registration 
processes, stressing that the public needs a clear understanding of 
which applications and fees are required, as well as timelines for 
the processes.  He suggested that a greater use of online technology 
by the government would improve transparency. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Short said he believes President Mills is serious in his 
desire to deal with corruption, and commended Mills' swift action in 
 
ACCRA 00001283  002 OF 002 
 
 
forcing out three ministers accused of wrongdoing earlier this year. 
 However, Short noted that the political will expressed by the 
President has not yet been accompanied by concrete resource support. 
 
 
Mabey & Johnson 
--------------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Concerning the Mabey & Johnson case, which led to the 
forced resignation of two ministers from Mills' cabinet in October 
after the British company pled guilty to bribing Ghanaian officials 
in the 1990s (reftels), Short said CHRAJ is conducting its own 
investigation.  He said he had met with the British High Commission 
in Accra, but that the UK government has not provided adequate 
information.  Short said that the UK's Serious Fraud Office, which 
investigated Mabey & Johnson in Britain, has failed to turn over to 
CHRAJ evidence concerning Ghanaian officials who are named in the 
plea agreement as having received bribes.  Short added that the 
majority of the Ghanaian officials implicated in the scandal have 
filed responses to CHRAJ's queries, and that the investigation is 
proceeding. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶10. (SBU) While CHRAJ has a broad constitutional mandate to address 
human rights and government malfeasance, Short's focus on corruption 
is timely, given the Mills administration's emphasis on this issue 
and the high-profile resignations and investigations that have taken 
place since Mills assumed office.  It also reflects a heightened 
concern among many Ghanaians over the management of oil revenues, 
with production likely to begin in 2011.  President Mills has taken 
a strong public stance against corruption, but Ghana's 
anti-corruption institutions (including CHRAJ and the Serious Fraud 
Office) remain under-resourced, and there remains a perception that 
partisan politics is often a major factor in decisions to pursue or 
prosecute public officials. End Comment.