Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, has expressed worry over the continuous extortion and corruption at the Passport Office.
On the back of this, Madam Ayorkor Botchwey has relieved staff who were seconded to the passport office of their duties.
The Minister has directed that effective Monday, August 21, 2023, these employees should not report to work because they have been changed.
Notably, she cautioned employees who had worked at the Passport Office for more than a year to stay off work as part of measures to bring sanity.
“Everybody who has been here for more than one year, from Monday on, please do not come back because you have been changed. We want to restore some sanity. Every time politicians are corrupt, meanwhile, it is some public civil servants who will do things that shouldn’t be done, and then they will be put on politicians,” she directed.
This was after a visit to the passport office on Monday, where the Minister expressed her shock at the unfair procedures that employees there subject applicants to.
She bemoaned that, through the collaborative effort of Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia the Ministry has been able to digitise the passport acquisition process.
However, some people are deliberately manipulating the system for their gain.
The Minister hinted investigations have commenced into the criminal activities with some names already coming up.
The investigations, she noted, has shown the existence of a network that was working with Passport Office employees, adding that she was shocked at the widespread notion that only politicians and her ministry were responsible for corruption.
“It is disheartening that while blame is often laid at the feet of politicians, it is, in fact, some public servants who engage in these wrongful acts, which are then mistakenly attributed to politicians,” she lamented.
She added investigations into the “goro boys,” who prey on applicants with the help of office staff, are still ongoing and moving forward.
The Minister said she is convinced there is cooperation with certain personnel at the Passport Office because these outside players cannot work alone.
She has, therefore, issued a warning that those found guilty will face legal action as a deterrent to others.
