The Member of Parliament for Manhyia South, Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, has firmly rejected calls for a new law to introduce lifestyle audits, arguing that Ghana’s existing legal and institutional frameworks already provide the necessary tools to fight corruption effectively.
His comments come amid recent remarks by the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, who announced that Parliament is preparing to draft legislation that would formalise lifestyle audits as a legal tool in Ghana’s anti-corruption framework.
According to the Speaker, the move marks a significant step toward addressing illicit wealth accumulation and enhancing accountability.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, the MP emphasised that while he supports every effort to combat corruption, duplicating powers through new legislation would be both redundant and counterproductive.
“I have always believed that anything that supports the fight against corruption should be encouraged. There can never be too many tools in that fight,” he said. “But we must be careful not to create politically motivated or duplicative laws and institutions. Instead, let’s strengthen what we already have.”
According to Mr. Baffour Awuah, various state agencies already have the legal authority to investigate individuals and institutions whose lifestyles raise red flags, even if these investigations aren’t formally labelled as “lifestyle audits.”
“When the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) audits someone, they are exercising a mandate granted to them under the law. The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) also has the authority to investigate suspicious financial behaviour. That is already a lifestyle audit in action.”
He pointed to recent examples involving the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC), which has acted on suspicious account activity by securing court orders to freeze bank accounts. These actions, he argued, are clear demonstrations of lifestyle auditing happening under current legal powers.
“If someone’s bank activity doesn’t match their declared income, the FIC steps in. That’s not a guess it’s an existing process. If we didn’t already have this path, then what would the FIC be doing? Every constitutionally established institution already has investigative powers that allow them to dig deep and that includes lifestyle-related investigations.”
He also reminded the public that although the Constitution guarantees the right to own property, that right is not without limits.
“Your right to property is protected but it can be restricted. Especially when there’s a need to investigate a crime, or even to prevent one. That’s clearly stated in the Constitution.”
For the Manhyia South MP, the push for an entirely separate law on lifestyle audits raises more questions than answers. He stressed that the focus should be on enforcing existing laws and equipping institutions with the resources they need —not layering more bureaucracy onto the system.
“If all these institutions already have the power to conduct lifestyle audits under existing laws, then what exactly are we trying to achieve by passing a new one?” he concluded.