Michael Boadi is the Fundraising Manager at Transparency International (TI) Ghana
Fundraising Manager at Transparency International (TI) Ghana, Michael Boadi, has emphasised that the battle against corruption must fundamentally begin with individual choices and a widespread mobilisation of the populace, moving beyond the perception that it is solely the government’s responsibility.
Speaking in an interview during a training workshop for journalists and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) on Anti-Corruption and the Gender Dimensions of Corruption at Adako Jachie in the Ashanti region, Boadi laid out a clear roadmap for citizen engagement.
The workshop, organised by Transparency International Ghana with funding support from the European Union (EU) and GIZ, aimed at building the capacity of participants in addressing corruption, particularly its disproportionate effects on women and vulnerable groups, a concern he had previously highlighted.
Boadi challenged every individual to become an active participant in the anti-corruption drive.
“You should be the one who should start fighting corruption,” he asserted.
He outlined specific behaviors that citizens must adopt: “Decide that you will never offer bribes. Decide that you will never take bribes. Decide that you will not pay a facilitation fee. Decide that you will wait for your turn when you are going to obtain service. The whom you know must stop with us.”
He argued that once these personal commitments are made, it paves the way for greater accountability.
“If we do all this, then we can now begin to point accusing fingers at those who are not doing it,” he said.
Furthermore, he urged citizens to commit to reporting corruption, whether as victims or witnesses, and to follow up and get a resolution.
In Boadi’s view, a crucial missing element in Ghana’s anti-corruption efforts has been the failure to rally the public.
“We haven’t rallied the masses behind the fight,” he stated.
He passionately called for a paradigm shift, saying, “It’s about time that you and I support them by giving volunteering information, by providing evidence, and also by changing our own behaviour.”
Boadi underscored that corruption, while a crime, is also a behavioral thing.
He concluded with a direct appeal to all persons, urging them to change their behavior and stop offering corruption, adding that those who receive it will likely stop receiving it.
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