‘Deal with canker of corruption’
The President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Ghana (ICAG), Mrs Angela Peasah, has urged accountants to help deal with the canker of corruption in the country.
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She expressed regret that accountancy appeared to have become synonymous with corruption in the country and, therefore, urged accountants to avoid cutting corners or using sly and subtle tricks in performing their duties.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of a three-day induction seminar for 205 newly inducted members in Accra last Wednesday, Mrs Peasah entreated the inductees and practising accountants to be mindful of the five fundamental principles of the International Federation of Accountants’ code of ethics – integrity; objectivity; professionalism; competence and due care; and confidentiality and professional behaviour.
She reminded the inductees to be guided by integrity, which was their slogan, and urged them to be honest in practice all the time.
“Having fought a good battle to qualify, do not ferret it away at a whim. Work hard to uphold it through professionalism, moral uprightness and maintaining an unshakeable stance in the face of the vilest of all temptations,” she added
Maintain high ethical standards
The Managing Director of the Ghana Commercial Bank, Mr Simon Dornoo, described the responsibilities of the professional accountant as onerous and, therefore, required an attitude of professionalism, transparency and accountability.
According to him, the profession also required actors to maintain high ethical standards and essentially work above reproach.
“The newspapers are always rife with one or other reports about malfeasances committed by accountants,” he added.
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He challenged the inductees to believe that practising the principles of ethics and good governance would help them reach the heights they anticipated.
Consider ICT in the training programme
The Minister of Finance, Mr Seth Terkper, in a speech read on his behalf, recommended that the institute consider inculcating information and communication technology (ICT) in its training.
According to him, ICT would not only reduce the workload but would also enhance the quality of outputs accountants produced.
“The use of the electronic payslips and E-salary payment voucher system in the public service are examples of the use of ICT to enhance payroll service delivery in Ghana,” he said.
Writer’s email-doreen.andoh@graphic.com