EDITORIAL: A national fault line...

Morality in officialdom is now an endangered virtue. Instances of top public officials resorting to outright lies when they are ensnared in a web of immorality are worryingly rampant.

This moral anomaly goes hand-in-hand with graft. Most of the lies recorded in officialdom are spewed to protect corrupt activities - an aberration which appears to be mutating dangerously and pervading all public institutions, leaving in its wake major structural cracks.

So endemic has it become today that it is losing its importance, even as front-page stories in media establishments. This is an apt indication of how deep the aberration has eaten into the social fabric.

The government information machinery must work hard to restore its lost image among most Ghanaians. The perception that this department is largely a propaganda outfit whose releases must be ingested with a pinch of salt is responsible for its image predicament.

A few months ago the information minister struggled to correct credibility-deficient disclosures emanating from his office, among which is the name-change of the Flagstaff House. His stuttering efforts left him bereft of the confidence and virility needed for his occupation.

Sincerity in government and public institutions no longer matters in the scheme of things. Public servants and political office holders, through public relations officers, throw so much dust into the eyes of members of the public that it would seem like these persons are not answerable to the people they are supposed to serve.

One of the leading private newspapers did a story recently about how an American company accused the Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly of demanding bribe from them before a certain contract could materialise in their favour.

The money was going to be shared among some top men at the Finance Ministry, he allegedly explained to the foreigners, who lost the deal because they did not play ball. Nothing has happened since the publication and the official has not been questioned about the allegation.

We have had cause to point out the many anomalies regarding recruitment into the Police Service, including promotion – something the administration always denies through its PR department.

A recent story about how some top officials were caught red-handed engaging in the recruitment anomalies, confirmed the widespread instances of graft in the law-enforcement agency.

Even before the foregone, some officers were nabbed at the Police Hospital engaged in medical examination procedures for some willing bribe payers. Although the story made disgusting headlines, the public is yet to hear what punitive action was taken against the culprits.

The oil industry is already mired in widespread graft, as a mafia fiefdom is gaining root. Perhaps it is already suffering the resource curse associated with the natural endowment.

Our country is close to the precipice, propelled by an accelerated and multifaceted incidence of graft, leaving no institution untouched.