Professor Raymond Akongburo Atuguba, dean of the University of Ghana School of Law, claims that many of the country’s laws are outdated, which makes it difficult for people to keep moral standards in the corporate world, particularly the banking sector.
He asked, “How do you determine ethics with such a legal framework? Our laws are not in tune with the times.”
Speaking last Friday at the GCB Platinum Thought Leadership Conference in Accra, Prof. Atuguba stated that the nation’s statutes still contained roughly ten English legislation that were enacted between 1539 and 1863.
He stated that substantial advances had occurred since the laws, such as the Bills of Exchange Act, 1961 (ACT 55), were passed years ago, necessitating the passage of new legislation to keep up with the times, but that had not happened.
“Ethics, financial conduct, and the political economy in Ghana and other emerging markets” was the subject of his talk.
Since he viewed ethics as an extension of the law, it would be challenging for individuals to uphold the moral standards that guide corporations.
Bankers and subject matter experts from the financial and economics disciplines gathered for the one-day conference.
Distinguished guests included Ambassador D. K. Osei, President of the Council of Foreign Relations Ghana; Prof. Ernest Aryeetey, a former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana; Prof. William Baah-Boateng, Head of the Economics Department of the University of Ghana; and Felix Addo, a former Country Senior Partner of PwC Ghana.
It included talks and panel discussions on a range of banking and financial industry subjects.
The Public Procurement Act, 2003 (ACT 663), according to Prof. Atuguba, is one of the legislation that is costly to follow.
He declared, “The benefits the law is supposed to bring are outweighed by the cost of obeying the Act.”
In addition, he said that the Companies Act, 2019 (ACT 992) was declared illegal in part by the Supreme Court.
Albert Kobina Essien, a seasoned banking expert with Growth and Investment Partners, stated that the banking industry continues to face difficulties with credit utilization and procurement, which contributed to the financial sector cleanup.
