Editorial
Curb fraud in financial institutions!
In recent times it has emerged that fraudulent activities in many financial institutions are on the increase and that some members of staff of these financial institutions are involved in such unfortunate acts.
Consequently, the Bank of Ghana has advised all banks as well as savings and credit institutions, to take proactive measures aimed at preventing such negative practices.
The banking sector constitutes an important part of the economy, so fraudulent activities involving some banking staff tend to downgrade the confidence that people have in the financial sector. This can create serious problems for any country.
The banks are institutions for the mobilisation of financial resources to facilitate business growth in the economy.
Such fraudulent acts, therefore, have the tendency not only to destroy financial institutions in the country, but to throw economic growth out of gear.
For that reason, The Spectator is appealing to all financial institutions to up their game in terms of security measures to ensure that fraudulent deals are prevented if not minimised.
One way of doing this is to ensure that prospective employees are properly screened so that would-be fraudsters are not engaged under any circumstances to enter the financial institutions.
Another measure is to ensure that those who are caught in fraudulent deals are given severe punishment to deter others from engaging in such unpleasant activities.
As many people are in need of employment, prospective employees should not be selected based on whom you know. If people are recruited on the basis of whom you know, prospective fraudsters cannot be weeded out.
It is, therefore, important that honest people are scrutinised and employed to work in our financial institutions, be it the banks or savings and loans institutions.
This is how we can protect ourselves against fraud to ensure that decent jobs are carried out by all the financial institutions in the country.
Dear Editor,
I WRITE to condemn the circumstances under which an accident victim died recently after three major hospitals reportedly turned him away due to what has earned a place in our local parlance as ‘no bed syndrome.’
Reports suggested that this motor rider who got knocked by a vehicle was taken to three major hospitals – Police Hospital, Greater Accra Regional Hospital (Ridge Hospital), and the Korle-bu Teaching Hospital – but they all claimed they had no beds.
But one may ask, would there ever be beds?
Such is the treatment Ghanaians endure every now and then when one visits our hospitals, especially the public ones which are run with the taxpayers’ money. Many a time when one visits the hospitals, the sight of patients admitted and lying on benches, and some sitting on chairs while receiving care, is visible to all; making one wonder why this particular motor rider was not admitted at any of the facilities, looking at his condition.
This leads to the reason for this letter, which is to bring out a perceived apathy against these motor riders, the majority of whom are referred to as ‘Okada’ riders.
Due to their recklessness on the roads and the inconvenience caused to commuters, people always speak ill about them; drivers equally have no regard for them. Every user of public transport would attest to this. These riders are blamed for every offence, even when it is obvious drivers may be at fault sometimes.
Motor riders have become like orphans on the road; people care less about them, and when they are unfortunately knocked down, no one cares about them.
This is the mischief our authorities and agencies, including the police, must seek to cure to make the road safe for all users.
These are young folks that want to make a living for themselves, and with no skill or education, ‘Okada’ rides have become their source of livelihood. They need the protection accorded drivers and commuters as well.
In other countries, some facilities have been provided to make their work safer, but in Ghana, we lack them, leaving them with no alternative than to share the available space with the cars.
What has happened should serve as a wake-up call on our authorities to aim to take a second look at the ‘Okada’ menace. With the numbers increasing, there should be a way to regulate them because no government would have the guts to ban it totally.
Drivers should be made to accept the reality that they are sharing the roads with them, and therefore the need for patience and tolerance.
For some of our hospitals, I suggest the Ministry of Health conduct their own investigations to see what patients go through in accessing medicare, which is even not for free.
Thank you, Editor, for the space.
F. Morgan, Kokrobite
Dear Editor,
THE heartbreaking death of 29-year-old engineer Charles Amissah in a hit-and-run accident has exposed once again the failures in our health system.
Even more painful is the fact that his father had previously donated beds to some hospitals, yet when his son needed urgent care, he was moved from one facility to another because there were ‘no beds.’
This is not only tragic but unacceptable. How can a country lose its bright young citizens simply because hospitals cannot provide emergency treatment? The ‘no bed syndrome’ has become a national disgrace, and Charles’ death is a reminder that reforms cannot wait.
Our hospitals must be equipped to handle emergencies, and accountability must be enforced. If donations are made to improve facilities, then those facilities must serve the people when it matters most. Ghana cannot afford to keep losing lives to negligence and poor infrastructure.
Charles Amissah’s death should be the turning point. Let us honor his memory by fixing the system so that no family would suffer this kind of preventable loss again.
Princess Wonovi
Accra
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