In a message on the occasion of the United Nation’s International Anti-Corruption Day on Friday, TIGI said that “the people of Guyana must demand of their public servants honesty, integrity and a real commitment to transparency in all their dealing(s).”
The civil society organization noted that this will require “a concerted effort on the part of the public servants to lay bare their dealings to scrutiny (and) “it will also require concerted effort on the part of citizens to arm themselves with sufficient courage to hold accountable those in public office.”
TIGI also contended that there must be a cultural shift or awakening in the consciousness of the people of this country to recognize that they have the right to hold accountable those who govern, and that this applies as much to the public sector as to the private sector.
“So it’s time to change if we have not already begun to do so,” TIGI declared, while noting that the new political landscape offers opportunities for tangible changes in the governance of the country.
TIGI also called for partisan considerations to give way to considerations of country and all Guyanese, adding that “clean, transparent government should be the desire of the people and the goal of public officials.”
TIGI which was launched here in September this year said it wished to recognize those who have demonstrated sufficient passion and commitment to rooting out corruption in all its forms.
In that light, the local transparency body recognized “those media houses that have championed the anti-corruption cause long before the existence of TIGI, offering the public generous helpings of investigative journalism and editorial astuteness on the causes and effects of corruption locally and globally.”
TIGI also noted that there are “those individuals who, in a world numbed by unlimited possibilities for self-gratification and individualism, have demonstrated a singular passion for change whether through social media or individual action.”
The civil society body acknowledged also “the global struggle of people of the world for democracy, equality and social justice in societies where rampant corruption exist hand in hand with dictatorships and other forms of oppressive regimes.”
TIGI had stated at its official launching that its goal was promoting good governance through the empowerment of citizens to demand a country where there is transparency, accountability and anti-corruption standards from both public and private sector officials.
Bernard Crawford, Director of TIGI, stated then that while the organisation will not investigate individual cases of corruption, it would work with organisations that do. He had said it would be focusing more on a strategy for providing good governance and lobbying for formulation of policies and legislation, in an effort to promote transparency countrywide.
