The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, has ordered the withdrawal of officers on secondment at the Passport Office in Accra.
This follows alleged corruption in and sidestepping of the online passport application processes by such officers, middlemen and unauthorised agents, popularly known as “Goro boys”.
She gave the order on Monday when she paid an unannounced visit to the Passport Office headquarters to ascertain various complaints about delays in passport acquisition due to manipulation.
It has been a longstanding practice for officers from state agencies to be deployed on secondment to the office for one year to assist in the overall passport acquisition process.
However, Ms Botchwey, told the media after the visit that the officers had overstayed and should, therefore, not return to the office for duty beginning Monday, August 21, 2023.
“We have always said that no agency should keep their staff here for more than a year and yet this is overlooked sometimes. And so I intend to ensure that this is carried out to the letter,” she explained.
Ms Botchwey expressed worry that efforts to streamline operations at the Passport Office through digitisation, had been hindered by specific civil servants who manipulate the online application system for their personal gain.
“This cannot continue. There is too much happening that shouldn’t be happening in the passport acquisition system. If we talk about ‘goro people’, these goro people are outsiders.
“They do not work on their own because if the goro person collects somebody’s money, they need to work with somebody from inside to change the dates; this should stop,” she explained.
Ms Botchwey said investigations were underway.
“We are investigating and some names have been mentioned and people from outside, cartel who are working with people from inside. We want to bring some sanity in the system,” she said.
Until a couple of years ago, passport processing in Ghana was manual. Applicants bought forms at banks and designated areas, filled and submitted to the Passport Office for processing.
With the introduction of the online application service, applicants complete the form online, and book appointment for the remaining processes. The system was expected to curtail the activities of goro boys.
BY TIMES REPORTER
