By Ayodele Deen Cole
The latest Citizen’s Perception Survey on corruption has ranked Members of Parliament as the fifth most corrupt institution in the country. The report, which was released few days ago, also ranked the Sierra Leone Police as the leading corruption institution in the country, followed by the health care facilities, the educational service providers, the Local Councils, Members of Parliament and the Universities and tertiary institutions.
It was done by a consortium of Civil Society organizations with funding from the Department for International Development of the United Kingdom.
However, Members of Parliament are yet to respond to the latest finding.
Speaking to this press about the report, the Communication Officer for Budget Advocacy Network, Abu Bakarr Tarawally, said that the views in the report are that of members of the public, adding that the full report was then analyzed and complied by the CSOs. He also noted that, since the report was launched, several copies have been distributed to the administration of the legislative house but revealed that they are yet to comment on it.
According to the BAN Officer, most of the people interviewed in the report blame MPs for the lack of transparency and accountability in funds they received for and on behalf of their constituents. He said that most of the interviewees made reference to the last money provided to MPs for the establishment of an office space, for which some have not been able to properly account for.
He also noted that most MPs do not have any platform where they will explain to their constituents the full nature of some projects in their areas and the benefits the people will get from them. He called on the leadership of the legislative Parliament to start monitoring the financial and other activities of MPs, especially in areas where the funds are provided by the government or by any development partner.
Meanwhile, this press tried to get the views of MPs on the report but was not able to reach them due to the new media measures put in place by the administration of the legislative house.